I wrote earlier today that I thought it was a mistake to demote Jeff Francoeur to the minors. Well, he has now been recalled to the majors, which, to me at least, is puzzling, and in some respects calls the reasons for his demotion into question.
If the point of his demotion was for the team to "straighten him out" or "get him back to his old form," then how can three days in the minors solve those problems? To me this further underlines the real reasons for his demotion. If it really was for him to get his swing back, then the right thing to do would have been to keep him down there until that occurred (as per the original plan). In this instance, the team should have recalled Brandon Jones or Brent Lillibridge or Josh Anderson.
My feeling, especially after this hasty recall today, is that the real decision to demote Francoeur was a punitive measure, and had less to do with him rediscovering himself as was publicly stated.
This decision to recall Francouer also seems like a knee jerk reaction to the possible negative reaction that many had to his demotion.
Some chinks in the Braves front office armor are beginning to show...