Legendary Braves player will be missed

Major League Baseball said goodbye last week to one of the best to play the game. Chipper Jones of the Atlanta Braves hung up his cleats for the last time after 19 years of holding down the hot corner and, for a brief period of time, left field.

In most sports, it’s rare to find a player who spends a whole career in one uniform, let alone for almost two decades. He was a thorn in the sides of National League pitching from the time he broke into the “Bigs.”

A remarkable 2,592 games later, Chipper has solidified himself as one of, if not the, greatest Braves player ever, as well as a surefire Hall of Famer five years from now.

Though he struggled with injuries through the latter part of his career, Jones was a professional in the dugout and on the field, an icon for young baseball players in both Florida and Georgia.

From DeLand, Fla., Jones was selected first overall in the 1990 MLB draft, a sign that he would be a staple in the Braves organization for years to come. He was an unselfish member of the team, moving from third base to left field heading into the 2002 season so the team could sign Vinny Castilla.

After nagging hamstring injuries cost Castilla his job at third, Atlanta brought in Mark DeRosa.  But as DeRosa struggled, Chipper eventually made his way back to the spot he owned in Turner Field for the better part of his career.

Most players look out for themselves come time to sign a new contract, but Jones went the other direction in 2005 when he, his agent, and the front office reworked his contract. By taking a paycut he saved the team $15 million over the next three seasons.

His “team” attitude showed in his play between the lines, as he broke into the league in 1993. After an ACL tear in 1994 cut short his season, he came back in 1995 to help lead the Braves to their first World Series title since 1957 (when they were the Milwaukee Braves).

Although it was his only World Series ring, Jones played in two more Series, and as of last Friday, holds the Atlanta Braves record for most career postseason appearances with 92 games played. He was an eight-time All-Star, two-time Silver Slugger, batting title winner in 2008 when he hit for an average of .364 (second highest single season average for a switch hitter), an MVP award winner in 1999, and a world champion.

Jones is one of a select few players drafted first overall who would win a World Series with the same team, joining Darin Erstad of the Anaheim Angels, Pat Burrell of the Philadelphia Phillies and Darryl Strawberry of the New York Mets. More impressive, Jones is one of only 10 players to hit for a career average over .300 while also hitting 450 or more home runs. But what makes him such a rare player is that he is only one of five to do so while playing with the same team for an entire career.

His career ended with an early playoff exit during last week’s controversial National League Wild Card game. With no hits in his first four plate appearances, Jones came up in the bottom of the ninth with two out. In his last moment at the plate in a Braves uniform, he snapped his bat on a squeaker up the middle and beat the throw to first for a single, a fitting last hurrah.
Chipper wore two jersey numbers in his illustrious career, 16 and 10. But the most important number, at least in this short column, is 19: for the outstanding, Hall of Fame-worthy years in Atlanta.

So, from the rest of the baseball world outside of the southeast United States, thank you, Chipper. We’ll see you in Cooperstown.