Jeff Francoeur will be on Atlanta Braves’ opening-day roster

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (TNS) – For the first time since 2009, Jeff Francoeur will be in an Atlanta Braves uniform on opening day.

Minutes before a Tuesday noon deadline, the Braves purchased the veteran outfielder’s contract Tuesday and informed Francoeur that he would be on the opening-day roster.

“Frenchy earned it,” Braves general manager John Coppolella said. “Every step of the way he came in here and played well. He did everything we hoped he would do this spring.”

The pride of Parkview High was a Sports Illustrated cover boy as a Braves rookie in 2005. Francoeur, 32, has taken a circuitous route back to the Braves after being traded to the Mets during the 2009 season.

He was among the group of Article XX (B) free agents under baseball’s labor agreement. The status is for major-league free agents on minor-league contracts, and it meant Francoeur had to be told of his opening-day roster status five days before the major league season began.

Francoeur signed a minor league contract two days before position players reported to spring training and has played well, hitting .327 (16-for-49) with four walks, seven strikeouts and a .389 on-base percentage. He was 4-for-7 with an RBI double in his past two games including a game-tying double off the bench Monday.

His contract included a $1 million salary if he made the major-league roster, and the opportunity to make up to another $1 million in incentives.

The Braves’ final position-player roster decision was thought to be between Francoeur and utilityman Emilio Bonifacio, with Michael Bourn ($14 million salary) expected to have the other backup outfield job. But Coppolella said nothing was set yet.

“There’s a lot of ways this can go, too, it’s not like a certain person is out by this, just Frenchy is in,” Coppolella said. “We feel he is one of our 25 best.”

There’s always the possibility the Braves could keep Bourn and Bonifacio and send down another player such as Jace Peterson, who still has minor league options. That seems unlikely, as manager Fredi Gonzalez has indicated Peterson is still the primary second baseman, but the Braves could play Kelly Johnson and Gordon Beckham at second base.

All that remains to be sorted out, but the Braves know Francoeur is on the roster.

Nicknamed “Frenchy,” the amiable Francoeur remains popular among Braves fans and has been regarded as a terrific teammate at every minor league and major league stop in his career.

The Article XX (B) free-agent provision allows teams to offer a $100,000 retention bonus to those players if they’d like to send them to the minor leagues, but Francoeur had already told the Braves he wouldn’t accept a minor league assignment.