Frenchy wants 4M and Wifey wants a pony

Trust me, Wifey has a better shot at getting the pony, despite the fact the fact that I hate horses! (Barbaro killed the small modicum of "like" I had for the creatures.)

The Score Atlanta beat writer is reporting that Braves RF Jeff Francoeur is seeking $3.95M from the Braves for the 2009 season, while the Braves are offering (very generously, if you ask me) 2.8M. If the issue cannot be resolved, the two sides will go to an arbitration hearing next week. (PS, the Braves avoided arbitration with closer Mike Gonzalez, and will try to with Kotchman and KJ too, it seems.)

But seriously, where does Frenchy get off asking for 4M for next year as he comes off a season where he was demoted, pitched a fit, then was brought up to fall into a massive slump that lasted the entire season. Francoeur ended the year with his lowest career batting average, an Andruw-like .239 with only a .359 slugging percentage. His 11 home runs were nice, for a backup in the American League. OH, and he made only $460,000 last year. And he thinks THAT YEAR HE HAD LAST SEASON warrants a raise to just under $4M? He should be thanking his lucky stars that the Braves didn't offer him the MLB minimum!
I bet the former "Future Face of the Franchise" (now Brian McCann) wishes he had taken the deal the Braves thrown at him two seasons ago. I am sort of glad he turned that down. Now the Braves aren't stuck with another bad contract, like they were with Mike Hampton.
Now Frenchy could turn it around, but he just hasn't been the player he was during his first few weeks in the majors. He has turned into Andruw-lite with the refusal to change his swing or lay off the crappy pitches he sees. If you are a pitcher, do you even throw a pitch in the strike zone? NO!
I wonder if, when they DO go to arbitration, Frank Wren stands up and asks, "REALLY JEFF? REALLY? 4M? REALLY? You hit .239. REALLY?"

What is this guy thinking? I wonder if he is just pulling this stunt to get traded. He could be. And if he isn't careful, he's on the Royals in about three weeks. Careful Frenchy. Be careful.