Better late than never: Franco extends streak

HOUSTON -- Even when he’s drawing a walk late on a hitless night, Rays rookie Wander Franco has a flair for the dramatic.

After going 0-for-3 in his first three trips to the plate against the Astros in a 4-3 loss on Tuesday night at Minute Maid Park, the 20-year-old Franco came to bat against left-hander Brooks Raley with two outs in the eighth inning and his historic on-base streak on the line.

Franco took two pitches, then came a rare swinging strike on a high 1-1 cutter. The next four pitches alternated between balls outside the zone and pitches Franco fouled off to keep the plate appearance going. Franco has only struck out twice in his last 73 plate appearances and four times in his last 114 trips to the plate. Finally, the rookie shortstop took the eighth pitch from Raley -- a full-count cutter well above the strike zone -- and trotted to first base.

That extended Franco’s on-base streak to 42 games. It’s the longest active streak in the Majors, one shy of Frank Robinson’s AL/NL record for a player under 21 years old and the third-longest among all rookies in American League history behind the Mariners' Alvin Davis (47 in 1984) and the Yankees’ Charlie Keller (44 in '39).

Regardless of age, Franco already owns the longest on-base streak by a rookie in Rays history (previously Rocco Baldelli, 24 in 2003) and the longest by a rookie shortstop in the Modern Era (previously Chico Carrasquel, 37 in 1950). It’s also the longest single-season streak by a Tampa Bay player and the second longest overall, behind only Tommy Pham’s 48-gamer from 2018-19.