Atlanta, GA – The Atlanta Braves designated third baseman Juan Francisco for assignment prior to Thursday's game against the Toronto Blue Jays.
Francisco had been splitting time with Chris Johnson at third base during the Braves' first season following Chipper Jones' retirement, but was batting a mere .159 with one home run in 16 games this month. Johnson, meanwhile, owns a .346 average for the year.
In 35 overall games this season, Francisco hit .241 with five home runs and 16 RBI. The 25-year-old is a .254 career hitter with 19 homers over parts of five major league campaigns with Cincinnati and Atlanta.
To fill the roster spot, the Braves purchased the contract of left-handed pitcher Alex Wood from Double-A Mississippi.
Wood, rated as Atlanta's No. 7 overall prospect by Baseball America prior to the season, was leading the Southern League with a 1.26 earned run average while going 4-2 in 10 starts at the time of his promotion.
The 22-year-old is expected to initially help out an Atlanta bullpen that has four members (Jonny Venters, Eric O'Flaherty, Luis Ayala, Cristian Martinez) currently on the disabled list.
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