Franco Returns 'Home' to Atlanta

The Braves nab the 48-year-old veteran from their division rivals
By Joseph Fasano,  Newser User
Posted Jul 20, 2007 6:27 AM CDT
Franco Returns 'Home' to Atlanta
New York Mets' Julio Franco follows through on a base hit that scored David Wright against the Washington Nationals during the seventh inning in Major League Baseball action Friday, April 13, 2007, at Shea Stadium in New York. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)   (Associated Press)

Giving new meaning to the term "senior circuit," 48-year-old Julio Franco returned to Atlanta last night and drove in two runs in a 10-1 rout of St. Louis. Cut loose by the Mets on July 12, Franco says he's glad to be "home" with the Braves, who won five division championships with the slugger before releasing him in 2005.

The Braves are on the hook for less than $200,000 of the $2.2 million deal Franco had with New York, where this season he racked up only 10 of his 2,576 career hits. "I asked God, if I don't come to Atlanta, I might as well pack it up," said Franco, who got a standing O upon his return. (More Julio Franco stories.)

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