Veteran outfielder Andruw Jones says he will soon announce his retirement, Cory McCartney of FOX Sports South tweets. In November, Jones had reportedly been hoping to sign with an MLB team, but it appears likely he’ll hang up his cleats instead.
It’s been awhile since Jones has played in the Majors, of course — he last appeared in the big leagues with the Yankees in 2012. After that, he played two seasons with Rakuten in Japan. He did not play last season.
The MLB team with which Jones will be most strongly associated, of course, is the Braves, for whom he played from 1996 through 2007, joining Chipper Jones, John Smoltz, Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux in a group of elite players on a long string of highly successful Braves teams. (As Sports Illustrated’s Jay Jaffe tweets, Andruw and Chipper will both be eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2018.)
After emerging as a consensus top prospect in the Braves’ farm system, Andruw debuted with Atlanta at the tender age of 19 and soon became one of baseball’s top outfielders, creating tremendous value with both his outstanding defense and his power. Beginning in 1998, Jones won ten straight Gold Gloves for his work in center field. He also quickly became a serious home run threat, hitting 26 or more homers in nine straight seasons and peaking with a remarkable 51-homer performance in 2005, when he finished second in NL MVP balloting.
After the 2007 season, when he was still just 30, he left Atlanta and began an itinerant phase of his career, playing for the Dodgers, Rangers and White Sox before heading to the Bronx for two seasons. He declined steeply in his early thirties as his ability to hit for average rapidly diminished, although he did hit well in his two seasons in Japan.
Jones finishes his 17-season big-league career with a .254/.337/.486 line, 434 career homers and five All-Star appearances. Via Baseball Reference, his career Defensive WAR of 24.1 ranks 20th all-time. He made upwards of $130MM in his baseball career.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Well, Looks like the Braves missed an opportunity for ticket sales this year. Imagine A. Jones AND Francouer on the 2016 roster.
Hard to see Braves not pick him up on a minimum contract. Always loved seeing him in CF. would be a great mentor for Inciarte and Smith.
Terrible mentor for the two. Andruw is no where near the same players they are or will ever be. He would be a good mentor for Olivera even with Olivera’s age. He could really help him adapt to the MLB. Cut Swisher and bring on Andruw.
Andruw Jones COULD be a good mentor for them. He was one of the best defensive out fielders in baseball. He would be an excellent mentor in that regard
After the contract dispute with Francouer that sent him packing do you really think the Braves would ever want to do business with him again?
I’m just going to assume this whole thread about Andruw and Frenchy coming back is just a joke. Those are two horrible ideas. Andruw would be the worst possible mentor in the history of mentors. He survived a decade off raw talent and a natural ability to gravitate toward the baseball from the CF position. He was lazy. Look at the way he caught fly balls by just kind of sticking his glove out at the last second. Do you want him mentoring Inciarte on how to do that? Plus, who else is he going to mentor? Swisher and Bourn? What a laughable suggestion.
And bringing back Frenchy? Plain dumb.
Even if either one of Jones or Frenchy were worth anything – they’re clearly not – the outfield is crowded enough and is the last position where more awful, past-their-prime veterans are needed.
I think they were joking but did you know that, defensively, Andruw Jones rates as the best defensive center-fielder in baseball history. I don’t quite believe that – we don’t have batted-ball data for guys like Snider and Mays, but Jones was an outstanding defensive player.
Are the Dodgers still paying him?
Arguably one if not THE greatest CF of all time is going to probably go down in the “hall of very good”. I’m very sad nobody could’ve offered this man a minor league deal as corner outfield depth. I’d be shocked if his defensive skills eroded that much in Japan as he was still a plus fielder (shocker huh?) when he was with the Yankees in 2012 and that was largely due to the fact he has a really good first step and doesn’t take garbage routes. Something that happens when your arguably one of the best fielders of all time.
Plus he showed that his eye is still really good (105 + 118 walks) and at the very least he’s a platoon corner outfielder with power in Japan.
He was really good but you can’t make a case that he was THE best CF of all time when you got Willie Mays and Griffy in the conversation.
Maybe he meant the best defensive CF, which he probably was.
Jones was unmatched defensively in his prime. This is unanimously agreed by old metrics and new metrics where he’s the leader of Runs Fielded and Total Zone runs above average for all CFers.
He was also a force at the plate having put up 60 f-WAR (64.2) by the time he was 30. He fell off the map, which is why people like to say he wasn’t one of the all time greats.
He’s ahead of the likes of Chipper Jones (58.9 f-WAR), Jeter (53.6 fWAR), Vladimir Guerrero (51.8 f-WAR) and Manny Ramirez (48.9 f-WAR) in Fangraphs WAR (f-WAR) with 64.2 from 1998-2007.
He didn’t play in Japan last season but did play for Kingdom of Netherlands in the Premier12 last fall.
Mixed feelings. All around great player on the Braves. Lost all respect for him when showed up completely out of shape to the Dodgers on what was already an overpay.
I’m guessing w/ this announcement he could sign a 1 day deal or whatever they do so he retires w/ the Braves….
he doesn’t require giving up a Draft Pick that Fowler does.
It will be interesting to see how Andruw Jones fares in regards to the HOF five years hence. I don’t recall if he was ever linked to the use of PED’s, which would be an issue of paramount importance to many members of the BBWAA. Jones is certainly worthy of strong consideration based on a resume that includes some excellent offensive metrics to go along with his superlative defense in CF.
In my eyes, Andruw Jones is worthy of a plaque in Cooperstown.
I don’t think anyone has directly accused him, but his sudden drop in power will get scrutinized when he hits the ballot. Personally I doubt Jones was on PEDs, I think he started swinging for the fences and that eventually ruined his swing.
No shot at the Hall. Great defender and impressive power numbers, but a pretty subpar HOF resume. Belongs in the Hall of Very Good.
I wouldn’t put him in the hall. He was very good, definitely one of the best for about 10 years but his steep decline took him off the map
I disagree. If he had retired after his Braves contract expired, he would be in the Hall already. People are forgetting just how good he was and are focusing on how bad he was at the end of his career. The numbers he put up in his first 10 years made him a HOFer, the rest was just gravy. Even though the gravy was pretty sour, it shouldn’t ruin the meat of his career.
You won’t have to wait that long. Since he last played in 2012, he will be eligible following the 2017 season or the 2018 ballot. That ballot will have two of the best defensive players in history in Andruw Jones and Omar Vizquel. It will be an interesting test case to see whether or not defensive metrics have really taken hold of the voters. I think Jones has a much better shot than Vizquel due to his 400+ homers to go along with his defense. If he had retired at 31, he would already be in the Hall.
Unfortunately Jones will not be voted in by the BBWA. I remember how good he was as he and Chipper were my favorite players on the Braves for many years. I remember the history he made in the 96 World Series. His career falls short of the HOF however. He was a great defender and a good power hitter. I don’t suspect him of PED’s but his power numbers are simply just good along with many other OF’s at the time. His batting avg is low over his career and although I believe he was well loved by Braves fans, he was not the top name on his team (with Chipper and Maddux often filling that role), and although being one of the top defenders, he was not an offensive standout at the time he played. He was more in the category of Edmonds who was also a great defender (and also a better hitter than Jones, but with a little less power). Edmonds did not garner even the 5% to stay on the ballot in his first year and therefore I can see the same thing happening to Jones.
Jim Edmonds is a decent comparison with a much longer career, so I also do not expect Andruw to come anywhere close to the Hall. He left a very sour taste in Braves fans’ mouths in 06-07. Maybe I’m wrong since it’s been a decade, but my recollection was that he was consistently booed by the end of ’07 because he wasn’t hitting at all and was in a phase where he was constantly swinging for the fences and striking out, plus fans knew he was gone after the season anyway.
Actually, his aging curve would argue very highly AGAINST the use of PEDs., right? Jones aged exactly as you’d expect a player to age – lots of speed and defense early, as he filled out he developed power and lost the speed and some of the defense – all really normal patterns. Then he got out of shape and he lost his bat speed, because a big guy takes longer to get his bat through the zone. He still had a little bit of power but lost everything else.
The dude is a beast! Absolutely fun to watch when I was growing up (First saw him when I was 8, he and chipper clobbered the Mets in the first game I ever went to at Shea). Wasn’t in NY for long, but he was fun to watch that year as well.
Looks like someone punched him in the eye and he’s still smiling.
Same reaction I had to Abe Vigoda’s death: “What, again??”
Not a Hall of Famer.
I wasn’t aware he was still in the league….thought he had retired a few years ago.
Jones has an excellent chance to be inducted. Anybody who thinks otherwise is failing to take into account Jones’ defensive value.
Among players who have played the bulk of their careers since 1980, exactly 2 have amassed a total of 65 or more Wins Above Replacement: Ken Griffey Jr and Andruw Jones.
Kirby Puckett amassed 44 WAR, which is almost exactly equal to Bernie Williams, Ellis Burks and Dale Murphy, and slightly behind Mike Cameron. Puckett obviously is in the Hall.
Jones amassed substantially more WAR than Puckett, Andre Dawson or Jim Rice… all of whom are in the Hall.
Jones is 5th all-time in HR by a center fielder, behind only Mays, Mantle, Griffey and Dawson, and well ahead of #6 Duke Snider. Everybody else on that list is in the Hall.
Jones was the greatest defensive player of his generation. He hit 434 HR. If that does not make a person a Hall of Famer, then I have no idea what would.
Quick edit… Among the center fielders (not “players”) who have played the bulk of their careers since 1980…
Jones had a career WAR of 62.8. Edmonds is 15 places behind him all time and as far as I can see the next CF in the category at 60.3. Jones had about 15 more points than Edmonds in d-WAR, but obviously Edmonds was better offensively just with less power.
Actually, Edmonds is four behind Jones in career WAR in CF – the three between are all HoF players (Ashburn, Dawson and Billy Hamilton).
Puckett was a bad HoF choice, though. He got elected because of the two world series and the perception he was a great guy (boy, was that wrong!) and the tragic way his career ended. If you want to talk about a center fielder who got shafted in the Hall voting I look no further than Kenny Lofton. Absolutely no idea how he fell off the ballot after one year. He compiled 68.2 bWAR in his career – the ninth-highest total in history, higher than Jones by a bit and higher than Edmonds by more than a bit. There’s tons of Hall of Famers below Lofton in career WAR…it’s puzzling his case wasn’t considered more strongly.
Looking at Puckett’s career numbers, they really aren’t great, however for 10 years he was at the forefront of the Twins organization and in only 12 years he did have 2300+ hits, which is pretty incredible along with a .318 Batting Avg. If he was able to play 4-5 more years, his career numbers may have looked close to or a little less than Tony Gwynn’s just with a little more power.
Yeah, I can agree, but we probably shouldn’t put people in the Hall based on what their careers “might” have looked like had they not been injured. I mean, there’s lots more of those guys than actual HoFers – Tony Conigliaro, David Cone, Bret Saberhagen, Johan Santana, Dickie Thon. Puckett’s numbers should have been evaluated on their own – and they weren’t enough, in my opinion.
I agree lol
We’ll if he would have just stayed with the Braves he probably numbers would have stayed good he was just comfortable in Atlanta.
Wow, spam is allowed on MLBTR now?
I don’t see how this is one called as “spam”, this article is related to Baseball. Not to mention it’s about two former Major league players now playing in a different country. I’m just providing some additional information regarding about Baseball league overseas. Don’t like it? Then they are free to delete it.
Apparently spam is allowed, JcHc3in1. That’s the only reason your off-topic, awful post made it past the moderators. You have successfully tested the waters.
His post was about the Jones article. Putting a link at the bottom of the post doesn’t make it spam. Don’t click it, stop crying. And Andrew Jones could barely hit 200 the last 5 seasons that he played here….which was 3 years ago…and he got fat. He is done. He did still have some power so I guess he could sit on the bench and pinch hit a little if the Braves are that desperate for attention. I don’t buy the mentoring aspect. He doesn’t have to play and take up a roster spot to help young players out.
Agreed. Although I’d like to see him finish in a Braves jersey, they could still hire him to mentor the young guys.
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Happy for A. Jones. He was not well liked in LA for smiling and sometimes laughing when striking out almost every at bat. Greatest boof of all time for Dodgers…still paying him I think.
I could have said I read this story last year about Andruw Jones retiring… Deja Vu much?
I could have swore* I read this story last year about Andruw Jones retiring… Deja Vu much?
calling someone the best ever centerfielder of all time based on WAR is questionable. the best cf defensively i ever saw was Jimmy Piersall. great arm too. and Andruw Jones was a poster boy for steroids.