Ty France is Making a Great Impression
It was a cold Friday night when the Padres took on the Lake Elsinore Storm in a preseason exhibition game.
I sat alongside fellow EVT writer, Mike Clark, and founder, James Clark, behind home plate, as we watched the Padres’ starting line-up slowly begin to substitute with up-and-coming prospects.
Among those prospects was first baseman, Ty France. He was a late addition to the game, sporting the number 98, which was originally 
supposed to be worn by catcher Kyle Overstreet. However, the change was never made up in the press box, so for the entirety of his appearance during this late spring exhibition game, Ty France was called Kyle Overstreet by the announcer, and thus by the fans around us.
We were able to catch on quickly that is was actually Ty France sporting number 98 because we were sitting next to his family. His mother is who pointed out to us that it was actually France and not Overstreet.
On the night, Ty France took over for Padres’ star Wil Myers, and had two plate appearances. He tallied a base hit, a run, and a strikeout during his two appearances. He also made a splash on defense, taking part in a double play, with starting short stop, Erick Aybar. Little did we know, we got just a little taste of the intensity that Ty France would bring to the Lake Elsinore Storm early this 2017 season.
#padres ty france @dmfrance71013pic.twitter.com/d86HorJNqi
— gwynn19 (@wcoastcapper) April 1, 2017
Ty France, 22, was drafted in the 34th round of the 2015 amateur draft by the San Diego Padres out of SDSU. He was a pupil of Tony Gwynn, and his plate discipline is evidence of that. Since being drafted, he’s worked his way through the minor league system and has recently been promoted to the Double-A San Antonio Missions.
In 30 games and 111 at-bats with advanced-A Lake Elsinore Storm, France put up a slash line of .288/.389/.360 with 10 runs and 19 RBI. He was second on the team in RBI, and fourth in hits, before receiving his promotion. In his last 15 games with Lake Elsinore, France batted a .350 average with 16 RBI and 38 total bases. So it’s safe to say that the contact hitter was well-deserving of his promotion.
Ty France has not skipped a beat since taking that flight to San Antonio either. France is hitting .467 (14-30) in his first eight games in San Antonio. He smacked two doubles on Friday night and continues to do the little things to win games for his team. No matter the level, he has performed. Perhaps it’s time to take notice of this young man.
France has yet to hit a home run this season, and the ball doesn’t launch off of the bat with great power that so many first baseman have. But still, Ty France will win you some ball games. He gets on base, he drives in and scores runs, and he has only struck out 19 times in 141 at-bats this season. He’s patient at the plate and he’s turning heads every chance that he gets.
Kyle Over– errr… I mean Ty France has the potential to be quite an x-factor for the Padres in the future. At 22 ,years old he is four years younger than Wil Myers and is making great strides toward becoming a solid backup and reliable bat off of the bench. Whether he’ll live up to that potential or be used a trade piece for the magician A.J. Preller remains to be seen. Either way, we should all keep our eyes out for Ty France.
Derek is a 22-year-old out of Lemon Grove, California. A burning passion for San Diego sports led him to pursue an opportunity to write and share about what’s going on with the teams in America’s Finest City. A young and aspiring sports journalist looking to grow his knowledge and expand his experience at any opportunity.
