Welcome everyone, this is Jeff Francoeur, and this is my first blog at http://www.jefffrancoeur.com/.

As an outfielder for the Atlanta Braves, one of 32 Major League Baseball teams, I'm looking forward to taking you on a journey through the 2008 season. I'll be posting blogs from around the United States as I travel with the ballclub around the country this summer.

Today's first blog post is from Orlando, Florida, sight of our Spring Training complex. Along with about half of the teams in Major League Baseball, we spend about six to eight weeks here in the state of Florida (the other teams are in Arizona) getting ready to start the season. Each team is located in a different city around the state, and the Braves make their home here in Orlando at the Disney Wide World of Sports complex. I actually love coming to Orlando for Spring Training because there are so many different things to do for my family and friends. Sure, it would be nice to train at a city by a beach (I know other teams train in places like Jupiter, West Palm Beach, and Clearwater), but the great thing about being here in Orlando is that there is so much entertainment for everyone that comes down here to visit me. When I wake up every day, I know that I can go to the complex and train, while my family can go to Disney World, they can go golfing, they can go to any number of great restaurants, etc. I eat with my friends and family every night here in Orlando, and it's great to listen to them talk about all the different things they did during the day while I was at the ballpark. I'm also a big golfer, so that's another reason why I love coming down to Orlando. There are just so many good golf courses in the area. As many of you know, Florida is a great destination if you are looking to get a few good rounds of golf in during February or March.

Spring training is a different atmosphere than the regular season. It's much more relaxed and fan-friendly, and the fan-friendly part is one of the reasons why I really love coming down here. If we have a game at 1:05 p.m., I will usually get to field at 8 a.m. That's where I am now. I lift until about 8:45, and then I go hit in the batting cage till 9:15 a.m. The team has an organized stretch at 930 and then I'm in the first hitting group at batting practice with teammates Chipper Jones, Mark Teixeira, and Mark Kotsay. After we hit, we then go and shag fly balls. After about 30 minutes working in the outfield, we then go back into the cage to get some more work. At around 11:00-11:15 I'll go inside, stretch again, maybe get a massage from our trainer and work out and back or leg issues I might have that day. By 12:40 I'm back out on the field signing autographs and ready for the game to start.

Since we are at spring training it affords me some more time to spend with fans signing autographs. During the season, when every game means so much, it's very important to stay focused before the game and make sure I'm ready to go 100% before the first pitch. In the spring, with the pressure down a little bit, it gives me more time before the game to interact with fans and sign more autographs pre-game. I really love the fan interaction.

Some of you may have seen that I was hit in the face last Sunday during a game against St. Louis. I'm totally fine, and I'm already back and playing with the team. In fact, my first game back came against Detroit Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander (who consistently throws 100 mph) and then my next game back was against 2007 CY Young Award winner C.C. Sabathia of the Cleveland Indians. Just my luck, right? Once you get in the box to face those guys, you realize that when you are facing pitchers who throw as hard as they do you have to look for a certain ‘spot' to swing at and not a certain pitch. Unlike facing a guy with some off-speed stuff where you might be looking for a pitch in a certain count, when those guys throw every pitch at 98 mph you have to basically swing at a certain spot over the plate and hope to make contact. It's tough.

The season starts next week, and after our one-game season opener against the Washington Nationals in Washington, D.C. I like Washington, D.C. a lot. It's going to be quite a thrill to open up the season at the Nationals' new stadium.

Like many of you business travelers out there, our trip to Washington, D.C. for one game is a pure business trip. Usually, we may spend three or four days in a city. But with this trip being just one game, I'll probably wear a suit on both flights and might take a very small piece of luggage with me, literally just a fresh set of shirts and some other small items. With President Bush in attendance, and with the game being shown on national television (ESPN), it's a great opportunity to play on the big stage. That means I'll probably take it easy that day by just hanging around the hotel. Just like many of you who come into Washington for a day of business, I won't do much sight-seeing this time.

When that trip is over, however, our next trip takes us on our first "real" road trip to Colorado, back to Washington (this time for three days) and then to Florida. I think Denver is a real cool city. Flying in over the Rockies is a beautiful scene. And yes, they have some really great golf courses there, too. Then we go play the Marlins in Fort Lauderdale which I really enjoy because as a team we stay on the beach. When we play the Marlins, I like to go down to the beach from 10 am to 1 p.m. just to get relaxed.

Looking at the calendar, our first home stand sees the Pittsburgh Pirates. It will be great to see my former teammate Adam LaRoche. Then we have the Mets coming into town which excites me because it means we face a big rival early in the season.

Throughout the year, I'll be updating you on my travels across the country. I'll update you on my favorite restaurants, hotels, and road trips as we criss-cross the country on Delta Air Lines playing for the NL East title. I'm excited to interact with you all, and I look forward to checking in with you right after the season starts.

Best,
Jeff