OFFICIAL: We've acquired RHP Trevor Richards and RHP Bowden Francis from the Brewers in exchange for 1B Rowdy Tellez. Welcome to the #BlueJays, @trevrchrds and @Bowdenpoint0!
Looking back at Bowden Francis’ journey to the Major Leagues
Photo credit: © David Butler II - USA Today
Sep 4, 2024, 12:00 EDTUpdated: Sep 4, 2024, 07:51 EDT
It’s no secret that Bowden Francis has been terrific since his last call-up.
Let’s be real here: the 2024 Blue Jays aren’t good, and at a certain point, they weren’t really fun to watch. However, after the trade deadline, they’ve become an incredibly fun team to watch, even if they haven’t been lighting the league on fire.
There are many storylines to monitor, as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is having a career year, and the kids from Buffalo are starting to smack the ball. However, the most intriguing storyline surrounding the 2024 Blue Jays is the emergence of Bowden Francis.
In this article, let’s take a look at how the Jays acquired him, his journey in the minor leagues, and how he’s become a big-league regular.
A bullpen in disarray, an unneeded first baseman
Until this season, Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s best season in the big leagues was in 2021, as he finished the season slashing .311/.401/.601 with 48 home runs in 698 plate appearances, finishing second in American League MVP voting. Starting his career as a third baseman, Guerrero started playing first base in 2020 alongside Rowdy Tellez, who had a great 2020 season where he hit eight home runs in 127 plate appearances during the pandemic-shortened season.
Unfortunately, Tellez didn’t hit well with the Jays in 2021, slashing .209/.272/.338 with four home runs in 151 plate appearances for a 62 wRC+. At the same time, the Blue Jays were hemorrhaging winnable games thanks to a pretty awful bullpen. Something about Guerrero Jr. having career years when the Blue Jays bullpen is terrible, odd.
Anyway, the Blue Jays made a trade in early July 2021, moving Tellez to the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for Trevor Richards and prospect Bowden Francis. Tellez finished the season slashing .272/.333/.481 with seven home runs in 174 plate appearances for a 112 wRC+. He hit 35 home runs the following season, but only had a 110 wRC+, before a rough 2023 season and a not-so-great 2024 season with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
At times, Trevor Richards looked like an elite reliever with an 80-grade changeup. There was also the “Trevor Richards ERA blow up” from 2022 until this July, before he was traded to the Minnesota Twins for prospect Jay Harry. However, Richards (along with Adam Cimber) helped stabilize a dismal Blue Jays bullpen thanks to a 3.31 ERA and a 4.61 FIP in 32.2 innings pitched, helping the Jays push for a playoff spot. Sadly, they came up short on the final day of the season, as both the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees won their game.
Tellez and Richards have had bright spots since the trade, but the only player still with the team they were originally traded to is Francis.
Let’s talk about Francis’ tenure in the minor leagues
After the trade, Francis was assigned to the Buffalo Bisons in Triple-A where he had a 4.19 ERA and a 5.65 FIP in 73 innings pitched (13 starts in 14 appearances). The Jays saw it fitting to add the righty to their 40-man roster, with Francis even getting a cup of tea with the Jays early in the 2022 season, where he pitched two-thirds of an inning.
However, the 2022 season wasn’t good for Francis, like at all. In fact, of any pitcher with 50 or more innings pitched in the Blue Jays system that season, Francis’ 6.59 ERA and 6.02 FIP in 98.1 innings pitched were the worst, a sample size of 40 pitchers. Still, he had a much better second-half to the season and dominated in Puerto Rico during their winter league.
Here's every single whiff & strikeout from Bowden Francis (@Bowdenpoint0) in the Puerto Rican Winter League! Reckon his FB sits in the mid 90s, and he has a plus slider and curve. 0 ERA in 12 IP, 33.3 K, 2.6 BB%, 31.18 CSW% #BlueJays #NextLevel x.com/MiLBClips/stat…
Francis had a much better start to his 2023 season in Triple-A, posting a 2.67 ERA and a 4.24 FIP in 27 innings pitched (seven starts in nine appearances). This short stint saw him post a 37.2 K% and a 6.2 BB% before earning a call-up to the big leagues.
Francis becomes a mainstay for Toronto
After his second call-up to the big leagues in 2023, Francis pitched in a long-relief role. Overall, he finished with a 1.73 ERA and a 3.86 FIP in 36.1 innings pitched. All 20 of his appearances were in relief. Moreover, he had a 25.7 K% and a 5.9 BB%.
Coming into the 2024 season, Francis wanted to start and added a splitter to his repertoire. Thanks to injuries, Francis started the season in the rotation and well, it didn’t end all that well. In three starts to start the season, the righty had an 11.81 ERA and a 7.21 FIP, along with a 28.8 K% and an 11.5 BB%.
After those three starts, Francis moved to the bullpen where he had some success, posting a 3.54 ERA and a 4.64 FIP in 28 innings pitched, missing time with an injury and later being optioned to Buffalo. The stint with the Bisons was brief, but he made four starts in six appearances, posting a 0.93 ERA and a 2.35 FIP in 19.1 innings pitched, along with a 34.3 K% and a 4.3 BB%.
The Blue Jays traded Yusei Kikuchi to the Houston Astros in late July and Francis moved into the starting rotation. Since his first start in Kikuchi’s spot on July 29, Francis has a 1.58 ERA, a 3.20 FIP in 40 innings pitched, and a 29.3 K% and a 3.6 BB%. His terrific August earned him a Player of the Week award and the American League Pitcher of the Month nod.
ROSTER MOVES: 🔹 RHP Bowden Francis and RHP Jose Cuas recalled from Triple-A and will be active tonight 🔹 RHP Yariel Rodríguez and RHP Yerry Rodríguez optioned to Triple-A Let's take Game Two! #TOTHECORE
Over his last four starts, Francis has a 0.62 ERA and a 2.28 FIP in 29 innings pitched, along with a 33 K% and a 3.1 BB%. His WHIP of 0.31 is the lowest of any player in history in a four-game stretch, as he’s allowed just ten baserunners. His last two starts have seen him pitch a no-hitter into the sixth inning at the very least, with Francis only being three outs away from the second no-hitter in Blue Jays on August 24.
That leads us to today, September 4, 2024. Bowden Francis is expected to make Wednesday afternoon’s start against the Philadelphia Phillies, which is a very tough lineup. Can he keep it up? I’m not sure, but this is a great story in a losing season.
As always, you can follow me on Twitter @Ryley_L_D.