Heyward/Freeman comparable to Francoeur/McCann

[HMFFL]

Heyward/Freeman comparable to Francoeur/McCann?

f you follow the Braves and/or spend much time around other Braves fans, maybe you’ve heard it. Perhaps in a hushed tone, with raised eyebrows as if the person saying it is implying, “I’m not saying I believe it, but…”

If you’ve been online much, you’ve probably seen it on Twitter or in blog comments.

It’s this: Freddie Freeman is to Jason Heyward as Brian McCann is to Jeff Francoeur.

There, I typed it. But I had an eyebrow raised while typing it.

Because it’s way too early to make that assessment, in my view. Not when Heyward, a consensus pick as the top prospect in baseball before his arrival, had 18 homers, a whopping .393 on-base percentage and .849 OPS in 142 games as a 20-year-old rookie in 2010, despite playing much of the season with a thumb injury that sapped his power.

But I can see why some at least whisper it, or say it off the record.

Because when Francoeur and McCann, two Atlanta-area kids, were climbing quickly through the Braves’ system and later arrived the same summer in the majors, we (media) made one of them out to be the can’t-miss kid and the Golden Child, the heir apparent to Chipper Jones as the face of the franchise, etc. http://blogs.ajc.com/atlanta-braves-blo ... raves_blog