Ty France was signed for a non-guaranteed $1 million contract on Feb. 11, just days before Spring Training. While you may think a non-guaranteed $1 million contract means France will have to fight for a roster spot, Rocco Baldelli has made it seem likely he will be on the roster come Opening Day.
Rocco Baldelli on Ty France: “He’s just 30, and he’s an athletic guy who put up some good numbers in a tough ballpark. We’re just going to let him hit and see what happens.”
— Bobby Nightengale (@nightengalejr) February 12, 2025
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France was an above-average hitter from 2020-22 and was slightly (101 OPS+) above league average in 2023 before taking a step back in 2024 with the Reds and Mariners. France's best full season was in 2021, when he was worth 4.4 bWAR and hit .291/.368/.445 for an OPS+ of 128.
He also hit well in 2022, 25 percent better than league average with a 125 OPS+. France was an All-Star for the Mariners in 2022.
France was hitting reasonably well prior to suffering a fracture in his right heel in 2024. He posted a .732 OPS in 61 games for the Mariners, whose ballpark is . The heel injury clearly negatively affected France, not just at the plate but also in the field, where he posted career-worst defensive metrics.
Upon returning two weeks after suffering the heel injury, he hit .220 with a .621 OPS over his final 79 games.
The Twins are hoping they get the version of France prior to his injury, or an even better outcome would be the the 2021-22 version. If France can have an OPS+ of 105-110 and post serviceable fielding numbers, he will be well worth the $1 million salary the Twins gave him.
He's not a huge power hitter, but he sprays line drives and gets hit by pitches a fair amount (leading the league in 2021 and 2023).
Expect to see France in the lineup quite often, and he will be more than just a platoon bat against left-handed pitching. He has relatively even splits vs. right-handed and left-handed pitchers throughout his career. France has a career of .753 OPS vs. lefties and .741 vs. righties.
One stat Twins fans will appreciate is that with runners in scoring position throughout his career, France has a .303 batting average. With men on base in his career, he has hit .288. He will likely be somewhere in the lineup behind the likes of Byron Buxton, Carlos Correa and Royce Lewis, whom the Twins hope will all be on base quite a bit.
Ty France blasts a 2-run shot 💪 pic.twitter.com/BpGp9WuVpM
— MLB (@MLB) September 21, 2024
Overall, one can expect France to be a decent bat and a serviceable glove at first base. If you believe the heel injury was the reason for his struggles, it seems safe to say he will bounce back and improve on his 2024 numbers.
If you think it was more than that and France struggles, it will be interesting to see how much run Rocco and the coaching staff give him on a $1 million salary.