PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- You're taking Uber to the airport, and the driver looks familiar. Finally, it comes to you: Nick Franklin.
No way. Why would the Rays utility man be driving Uber?
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For the past two offseasons, Franklin has driven for Uber around the Orlando area -- a vocation he embraced out of boredom.
"I wasn't doing anything on a weekend two years ago, and I told my parents, 'I think I'm going to drive tonight. I'm going to go drive for Uber,'" Franklin said. "... I just wanted to drive somewhere, do something, as opposed to sitting at home at night and not doing anything."
Driving for Uber has brought Franklin some interesting experiences.
"I had one customer two years ago -- I had to make a trip because Uber was going to shut me off because I hadn't made a trip in a while," said Franklin. "My trip, I had to pick them up about three miles away at a bank at 10:30 at night. It was odd.
"... They didn't say one word the entire way. It was dark and really creepy. It doesn't sound like much, but my adrenaline was going more than anything."
Franklin is in the mix for playing time in the outfield, at shortstop, second base and first base. Add in the Uber gig, and he has a little something extra to offer the Rays.