ST. PETERSBURG — The uniform was the first thing to go.
That was later followed by trust, and the benefit of the doubt.
And now, 11 months later, they are coming for Wander Franco’s future.
And possibly his freedom.
The can’t-miss kid who arrived in Tampa Bay at age 20, hit .368 in his first postseason and was an All-Star by 22 is now in danger of being an ex-ballplayer at 23. If so, he will go down as one of the greatest wastes of talent to ever walk out of a Major League dugout.
Late Tuesday night, ESPN editor Juan Arturo Recio reported that Franco had been formally charged with sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of a minor by Dominican authorities. The charges follow nearly a year of speculation and investigations after a social media post last August accused Franco of an inappropriate relationship with a minor, later identified as a 14-year-old acquaintance of Franco’s.
The Rays sent him home almost immediately after the initial accusation, and he’s not been seen at Tropicana Field since. Officially, he’s on baseball’s administrative leave list in a joint agreement between the team and the players association.
Unofficially, he is in baseball purgatory, and his prospects for redemption do not look good.
No, this is not yet the end for Franco in Major League Baseball, but the hour is growing late. Even if he escapes with a not-guilty verdict, the idea that prosecutors were willing to file charges against him is not a good sign for the type of testimony likely to be heard in a courtroom.
That could be problematic if Franco has any thoughts of resuming his career post-trial.
For the Rays, this news could be viewed as either disturbing or encouraging. Likely, it is both. You see, the team may be in danger of losing one of the most talented players of his generation, but a conviction could lead to Tampa Bay getting out from underneath the weight of a contract that has $172 million still remaining on it.
Up to this point, the Rays have been paying Franco’s salary even though he failed to show up in spring training because of legal restrictions in the Dominican. Voiding an MLB contract is practically unheard of, even in cases of criminal conduct. In the past, it’s been more common to reach a settlement with the player.
When Trevor Bauer was accused of assaulting a sexual partner, the Dodgers ate the final $22 million of his deal even though charges were never filed.
The Rays may instead choose to look at the case of Pirates reliever Felipe Vazquez, who was convicted of sexually assaulting a minor in Pennsylvania. Vazquez was eventually deported back to Venezuela, and it is believed the team voided his contract.
In recent weeks, there was word that Franco was confident his legal troubles would soon be behind him and he would be back in uniform before the end of this season. That hubris was obviously misplaced, and perhaps typical of a life that seemed charmed since he dropped out of school after sixth grade to focus on baseball.
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Explore all your optionsCelebrity found him at a young age, and riches followed a short time later. The Rays signed him for $3.8 million when he was 16, and baseball fans have been following the career arc of this hardball savant ever since.
While his baseball maturity was off the charts, Franco’s emotional growth seemed frozen somewhere in his mid-teens. He had a brilliant smile and, on the surface, an easygoing manner, but he seemed to lack some of the social graces most people take for granted. Other than Jose Siri and Zach Eflin, he did not seem to have many friends in the clubhouse and ended up in some scuffles with teammates, including Randy Arozarena.
In what can now be viewed as a potential omen, manager Kevin Cash suspended him for two games in June 2023 for not being a responsible teammate. The Rays later arranged for his best friend from the Dominican to keep him company in St. Pete and on road trips, and Franco went on a hitting tear shortly after the suspension.
Two months later, that all ended with the social media post.
For Franco, the cheering and adulation stopped quite some time ago. It’s been replaced by uncertainty and fear.
And, before it’s all over, maybe disgrace.
John Romano can be reached at jromano@tampabay.com. Follow @romano_tbtimes.
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