Franco marches on with four-hit performance

For most players, belting a grand slam would constitute a productive and noteworthy performance. Wander Franco is not like most players.

One night after connecting for a slam during a 1-for-6 effort, MLB's No. 1 overall prospect notched his first four-hit game of the season during Triple-A Durham's 7-4 loss to visiting Jacksonville. Franco's sixth multi-hit effort in the season's first 11 games lifted his batting line to .348/.404/.652.

The 20-year-old was in the middle of the Bulls' first-inning uprising, lining a single to center and scoring on Ryan Boldt's three-run homer. Franco lined another single to center in the second and was retired for the only time when he grounded out in the fifth. He stroked his third double of the season to center leading off the seventh and singled to right in his final at-bat for the fourth-career game with four or more hits and first since Aug. 11, 2019. Franco had a career-high five hits on July 14, 2018, his first professional season. The 5-foot-10, 189-pounder also flashed some leather, nabbing a grounder behind third base and making a strong throw to nab Luis Marte in the eighth inning.

In what has become the routine, Franco is off to another hot start despite being nearly seven years younger than the average player in Triple-A. The Dominican Republic native has reached safely in nine of 11 to begin the season. His seven extra-base hits have contributed to a 1.056 OPS and he's driven in and scored 10 runs. Franco has been a one-man offensive wrecking crew since he debuted in 2018 as a 17-year-old, batting .337/.405/.532 with 78 extra-base hits and 120 RBIs in 186 Minor League games.

In what has been his only full-season campaign to date, Franco batted .327 with an .885 OPS, 43 extra-base hits, 82 runs and 53 RBIs in 114 games across two levels in 2019. He swiped 18 bases and put together an impressive 56-to-35 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 495 plate appearances.

Marlins No. 6 prospect Jesús Sánchez continued his blistering start with three hits and two RBIs. The 23-year-old collected his third triple of the season, scored once and is now batting .500/.535/1.050 with five homers and 17 RBIs in 10 games.

Rays No. 12 prospect Joe Ryan struggled for a second consecutive start. The 24-year-old surrendered six runs on six hits and three walks with four strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings. Since debuting with five scoreless frames, Ryan has allowed 10 runs in 7 2/3 frames in his last two outings.