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Rays' Franco picks up Player of the Week

No. 12 overall prospect streaks his way to Midwest League honor
Wander Franco, who turned 18 in March, has earned three Player of the Week awards since last July. (Bowling Green Hot Rods)
April 29, 2019

A 12-game hitting streak and three of homers were more than enough to earn Wander Franco even more recognition Monday. Tampa Bay's top prospect was voted Midwest League Player of the Week after he tore up the circuit with a hitting streak that ended April 28.

A 12-game hitting streak and three of homers were more than enough to earn Wander Franco even more recognition Monday.

Tampa Bay's top prospect was voted Midwest League Player of the Week after he tore up the circuit with a hitting streak that ended April 28.

Franco, an 18-year-old shortstop, is 15-for-38 (.395) over his last 10 games with Class A Bowling Green. He hit three homers in two nights last week, highlighted by a two-homer, three-RBI performance on April 25 against Lansing.

View the Pitcher of the Week winners »

Franco went 5-for-9 in three games against Fort Wayne, including a 3-for-3 night on April 23. He homered on April 24, went 3-for-4 with three runs scored and three RBIs on April 25 against the Lugnuts and ended the week with a base hit against Lansing on April 26. The 12-game streak came to end Sunday, when he went hitless in four at-bats.

"Franco is making adjustments; not swinging at balls out of the zone," said Bowling Green hitting coach Jeremy Owens. "Wander is a good hitter. It's about growth and development."

Franco, a switch-hitting infielder from the Dominican Republic who signed with the Rays in July 2017, is batting .311 with 23 hits in 20 games this season for Bowling Green. In his pro debut last year, he hit .351 with 11 homers and 57 RBIs in 61 games with Rookie Advanced Princeton in the Appalachian League. He won a pair of Player of the Week awards last summer and was later voted the Appy League's Player of the Year and a postseason All-Star.

Below is the complete list of Minor League Offensive Players of the Week for April 22-28:

League Player Team MLB Stats
International Kean Wong Durham TB .619/.667/1.000, 6 G, 13-for-24, 3 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 8 RBI, 7 R, 3 BB, 5 K, 1 SB)
Pacific Coast Luis Urias El Paso SD .429/.500/1.250, 6 G, 12-for-28, 1 2B, 2 3B, 6 HR, 11 RBI, 11 R, 3 BB, 4 K
Eastern Hunter Owen Altoona PIT .417/.444/1.000, 6 G, 10-for-24, 3 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 7 R, 1 BB, 7 K
Southern Weston Wilson Biloxi MIL .308/.419/.769, 7 G, 8-for-26, 1 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 5 R, 5 BB, 2 K, 2 SB
Texas Zach Reks Tulsa LAD .500/.615/.800, 6 G, 10-for-20, 0 2B, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 8 R, 5 BB, 4 K, 1 CS
California Luis Alejandro Basabe Visalia ARI .421/.500/.842, 6 G, 8-for-19, 2 2B, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 5 R, 4 BB, 1 K, 2 SB, 1 CS
Carolina Yonny Hernandez Down East TEX .474/.615/.632, 6 G, 9-for-19, 1 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 4 R, 7 BB, 2 K, 4 SB
Florida State Brady Policelli Lakeland DET .444/.483/.889, 7 G, 12-for-27, 2 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 6 R, 2 BB, 5 K, 2 SB)
Midwest Wander Franco Bowling Green TB .429/.500/1.000, 6 G, 9-for-21, 3 2B, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 7 R, 3 BB, 2 K, 1 SB, 2 CS
South Atlantic Sam Huff Hickory TEX .348/.444/1.000, 7 G, 8-for-23, 0 2B, 5 HR, 6 RBI, 7 R, 4 BB, 7 K, 2 SB

Danny Wild is an editor for MiLB.com.