Tampa Bay Rays begin removing Wanderer Franco posters around Tropicana Field amid investigations into his alleged relationships with underage girls

The Tampa Bay Rays have begun cleaning Wanderer Franco’s form from Tropicana Field, according to a report.

Franco was placed on administrative leave by MLB on Tuesday as investigations into his alleged relationships with underage girls continue.

Franco has not played since the allegations surfaced, and with the 22-year-old absent from the field, the Rays have begun the process of removing his image from the perimeter of Tropicana Field. The Tampa Bay Times reported.

The poster outside the stadium in St. Petersburg, Florida, showing Franco, is said to have been replaced by quarterback Yandy Diaz.

The cover of the elevator featuring the shortstop was also reportedly replaced by one from pitcher Pete Fairbanks.

The Tampa Bay Rays started cleaning up a photo of Wander Franco from Tropicana Field

The franchise has reportedly begun swapping stickers of Franco to other players

The poster outside the stadium is said to have been replaced by one of the players, Yandy Diaz

The purge extended to the area around the Florida football stadium with an adjacent sports bar, Ferg’s, which also reportedly plans to remove signs showing Franco.

Franco’s disappearance from the Rais’ public eye began over the weekend when he was reportedly erased from television commercials.

Clips from the All-Star shortstop game have featured prominently in a number of ads this season but not during Friday night’s win over the Angels.

The Rays Up commercial, which featured a great catch by Franco, allegedly recently aired at a Wednesday game against the Giants but was not used on Friday.

The centerpiece of the ad is a bare-handed catch from the air by Franco against the Astros in April while the voiceover praises “some wanderlust magic”.

The same catch appears to have been released from another promotion by the time it aired again on Friday night.

Franco faces an investigation in his native Dominican Republic, with allegations that his Major League Baseball career may be over. The country’s public prosecutor’s office confirmed the allegations by at least two minors.

Major League Baseball has launched its own investigation, with Franco — who denies the allegations — reportedly turning to prominent sports attorney Jay Reisinger.

Posters of the Rays stars hang above the entrance to the stadium in Saint Petersburg

Rachelli Paolino, 21, was Wonder Franco’s childhood sweetheart and they married in 2021, but the baseball star has never mentioned her name publicly.

He was initially placed on the seven-day restricted list last week, but with his stint ending ahead of Tampa Bay’s opener against Colorado on Tuesday night, he has been placed on administrative leave while MLS continues its investigation.

“Pursuant to an agreement between the MBL and the MLBPA, Wander Franco has been placed on administrative leave until further notice as MLB continues its ongoing investigation,” the statement read.

The administrative leave, effective immediately, is not disciplinary under the Common Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy. We will comment further in due course.

MLB and the players union agreed to a joint domestic violence policy in 2015. It allows a player to be placed on administrative leave for seven days but allows MLB to request extensions while it is investigating.

The player continues to receive pay and accrue major league services while on administrative leave.

Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Trevor Bauer was on administrative leave from July 2, 2021, until the following April 29, when he was suspended for 324 games.

Franco bought a five-bedroom home worth $1.55 million in an upscale area of ​​Tampa in May of this year. He’s under an 11-year contract to play for the Tampa Bay Rays but there is now doubt that he’ll ever play in MLB again.

The arbitrator reduced the sentence to 194 games. Bauer was charged with assault, an accusation he has repeatedly denied.

Franco is set to earn $2 million this season and next as part of an 11-year, $182 million contract that began in 2022.

He is in his third season in the big league and has hit . 281 with 17 homers, 58 RBIs and 30 stolen bases on 40 attempts over 112 games.

Eighteen players have been disciplined by MLB under its domestic violence policy. The latest was New York Yankees player Jimmy Cordero, who on July 5 accepted a suspension for the last 76 games of the season.