Based upon Franco’s addition, the United League has extended the Cats initial homestand through Wednesday, May 28.

...2024.

Will he be able to play next year while serving as MLB commissioner?

Von Hayes played his last major-league game 22 years ago.

If they can make Space Cowboys, why can't we get a movie about a bunch of ex-baseball players who band together to chase those kids out there off their lawn.

I <3 Julio Franco! Baseball's a better game with him in it. One of the great batting stances in MLB history, and it defies the laws of physics how he got around on Rob Dibble in the 1990 ASG.

Somebody should at least ASK Rickey if he'd play a game or two with or against them.

Franco's wife must not be nearly as hot as Chris Getz'.

Somebody should at least ASK Rickey if he'd play a game or two with or against them.

It's only right that the first pitcher Franco would face would be Jesse Orosco.

Franco's wife must not be nearly as hot as Chris Getz'.

To be fair, Getz was talking about starting a family. Franco has to be a great grandfather by now right?

All joking aside, this is an awesome bit of trivia from Wikipedia:

He was the first MLB player to hit a home run with his grandson in attendance at the game.

Jamie Moyer was unavailable for comment.

Franco was signed to his first professional contract one year before ESPN launched. Two years before the first Rotisserie League draft. Four years before USA Today began.

During the papacy of Paul VI.

Now if only some ML team in September would say 'screw it' and sign him for the month and let him play here and there. Houston or someone else who will be 1000 miles from contention should do it just for the heck of it. Fun for fans, fun for media, drive a few people nuts about 'integrity of the game' or some such. Plus then there would be someone in the majors who is a full decade+ older than me, rather than having no one older than me playing.

Ha, I came here to make an obvious joke about Franco playing against his grandchildren, but the truth is already in the article!

He was the first MLB player to hit a home run with his grandson in attendance at the game.

I don't think I believe this. Also, I can't imagine how this was verified.

Now if only some ML team in September would say 'screw it' and sign him for the month and let him play here and there. Houston or someone else who will be 1000 miles from contention should do it just for the heck of it.

Franco should come full circle and be with the Phillies. Heck, he's 6 1/2 years older than Ruben Amaro, Jr.

Also, I can't imagine how this was verified.


They asked his grandson.

Oddly, this article doesn't seem to cite Julio Franco's age. (Maybe that's why the headline says "ageless.")

For those too lazy to do the research, he's 55. Born on August 23, 1958.

IOW, Julio Franco is still not dead.

How many MLBers have been grandparents while still active players? You'd need to have (1) a long-lasting, or late-starting, career; (2) father a child at an early age (3) have that kid also have kids at an early age. The first of those is probably the least likely, since most players are done long before 40. Was Griffey Sr a grandpaw before he retired? And if he was, did Mrs Jr ever bring the little nipper to the park? Let's get the crack BTF investigative team on this toot sweet!

Hoyt Wilhelm, Tommy John, Jim Kaat and Phil Niekro are other likely suspects to have been grandparents before retirement, but they weren't real HR threats....

Was Griffey Sr a grandpaw before he retired?

No. Trey Griffey was born in January of 1994; his grandfather's last season was 1991.

Bill James had a note in one of his books about Stan Musial getting a hit in his first at-bat after becoming a grandfather.

It's not easy to find information about ballplayers' families, unless a child or grandchild became famous in their own right, and that's probably a good thing. Bad enough we mercilessly hunt down their grandad's shortcomings on the playing field :)

Apparently Musial did hit a HR after becoming a grandfather, but it seems unlikely the child was in attendance. And since Musial retired a few weeks after this, his grandson probably never saw him play in person.