Jeff Francis named 2007 Graduate of the Year

In 2001, 20 year-old Jeff Francis finished his last summer in amateur baseball at the pinnacle, earning the series-clinching save for the NBC World Series champion Anchorage (AK) Glacier Pilots and earning MVP honors of the entire tournament.

Francis went 1-0 for the Glacier Pilots during the 2001 NBC World Series, earned the aforementioned clinching save, and did not allow a run in three appearances. Francis helped lead a dominating Pilots pitching staff that led the World Series in several categories including wins (7), earned run average (1.07), and strikeouts (70).

Francis has continued to build upon those successes from his amateur career and has become one of the top left-handed starters in all of Major League Baseball.

Originally hailing from Vancouver, British Columbia, Francis was drafted out of the University of British Columbia by the Colorado Rockies with the ninth overall pick in the first round of the 2002 June Draft.

In 2003, Francis’ first full season as a professional, he continued his winning ways. Jeff went 12-9 for the single-A Visalia Oaks of the Carolina League. He ranked among the league leaders in strikeouts (2nd, 153), innings pitched (3rd, 160.2), wins (T4th, 12), and earned run average (6th, 3.47). Francis’ 153 strikeouts also led the entire Rockies Minor League Organization. During that season he pitched two complete game shutouts, one of which was the first no-hitter in the California League since 1989. Francis also pitched well in the clutch that season, going 2-0 and not allowing an earned run in the California League playoffs.

Francis was moved up to Double-A Tulsa for the 2004 season and established himself as the top pitching prospect in all of Minor League Baseball. Francis made 17 starts for the Drillers, going 13-1 with a 1.98 ERA and 147 strikeouts. This amazing start earned him a promotion to the Triple-A Colorado Springs squad towards the end of the 2004 season. He continued to pitch well, going 3-2 in 7 starts in Colorado Springs.

For his outstanding work at the Minor League level Jeff was called up to the Rockies on August 25, 2004 He started 7 games for the Rockies, going 3-2 with a 5.15 ERA.

Jeff collected numerous awards for his 16-3 season in the Minor Leagues. In addition to being named a Texas League All-Star and Texas League Most Outstanding Pitcher for his time in Tulsa, Jeff was named Minor League Player of the Year by both Baseball America and USA Today.

Jeff has now cemented himself as one of the Rockies’ top pitchers and is growing into one of the more talented left-handed starters in all of Major League Baseball. He has led the Rockies in wins each of the last two seasons and joined Pedro Astacio as the only pitchers in franchise history to record multiple 13-win seasons. Already the winningest left-handed pitcher in Rockies history, Francis has gone 38-30 with a 4.69 ERA in 90 games in his brief major league career, all while pitching in Coors Field, a ballpark that typically favors the batters.

The National Baseball Congress World Series is proud to select and congratulate Colorado Rockies left-handed pitcher, Jeff Francis, as the 2007 Graduate of the Year.