Maikel Franco thriving at the plate since being called up by Phillies

Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Maikel Franco was touted as one of the best hitters in Triple-A upon arriving to Philly, and now the Phillies have experienced Franco's hot-hitting tendencies firsthand this season.

Only five games into his call-up stint with the Phillies, Franco is hitting .350/.381/.650 with five runs batted in, three of which he knocked in during a 3-for-4 outing against the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday.

"He had a heck of a game at the plate," manager Ryne Sandberg said.

Despite his instant success in the batter's box, the 22-year-old Dominican infielder still has plenty to learn at the big-league level, which he displayed by making a costly error at third base in the Phillies' 6-5 loss to the Rockies.

"Just a bad throw," Franco said. "But I know what I'm doing wrong. Just one mistake. Everybody makes mistakes."

"We talked to him about playing a little too deep, generally speaking," Sandberg added. "The ground balls were getting to him so he had to rush it."

The mistake cost the Phillies three runs in the bottom of the first. Franco answered at the plate by hitting a double to lead off the second inning.

Fittingly, he then knocked in the tying run in the top of the third to even the score to 3-3, and later evened the score again after the Rockies took the lead with a two-run single in the fifth, but a home run from Colorado catcher Nick Hundley gave the Rockies a definitive 6-5 lead in the bottom of the eighth.

(h/t MLB.com)