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Andruw Jones arrives at last

by Jim Baker

Ever since he blew into our lives in the 1996 World Series as an upstart with a lot of upside, we have been waiting for Andruw Jones of the Braves to hit full stride. While he has astonished one and all in center field, the plateward portion of his game has not responded as fast. Not that he has been a disaster with the bat. Although 2001 was definitely a down year, he had shown steady progress up to that point:

Andruw Jones OPS

1996: .708

1997: .745

1998: .836

1999: .848

2000: .907

2001: .773

2002: .967

Now, Jones, famous for his eternal grin, may well be hitting the heights foreseen for him by so many for so long. As we can see, he has resumed the upward climb and could be on his way to becoming the heir apparent to the title of "best player in baseball." Because he has been around for so long and because he is so visible playing for a team that is always in the postseason, we sometimes forget that he is only 25 and is, therefore, just now getting into his prime. And let us not forget that if he continued to achieve at his 1998-2000 level for the next 10-12 years and never went to the next level, he would still be a strong candidate for the Hall of Fame.

His plate discipline, which had not shown the steady improvement the rest of his offense had, is now becoming a factor. This chart shows how frequently he has walked. So far this year, he is getting a free pass for every six at bats::

1996: 15.3

1997: 7.4

1998: 18.2

1999: 9.1

2000: 11.1

2001: 11.8

2002: 6.1

This is clearly having an impact on his improvement. "I've always said when Andruw walks 100 times, he's going to have it," Chipper Jones (no relation other than lifelong teammates) said. "He's on pace for that. He's always been streaky, but when he goes through a stretch where he's patient and streaky, he puts up eye-popping numbers."

It appears that Jones has been able to curb his free-swinging nature and lay off the outside sliders that have been his undoing for so many years. His general manager believes that he is working to live up to what has been expected of him. "What we're seeing now is the complete package," John Schuerholz said. "What we're seeing in Andruw is what we and most of the baseball world saw potentially in him for a very long time. I think Andruw gets a lot of the credit for his maturity and determination to become the player he's become."

The only element of his game that seems to be on a downward trend is his base stealing. He is currently on pace to steal just 11 or 12 bases (although he has yet to be caught). This would mark the second year in a row at that level after four straight seasons over 20. This is an interesting turn in that -- with all the additional walks -- he is now on first base more than he used to be. However, if all the other elements of his game continue to improve, a few missing steals will be a very small price to pay.

[Guest]

Don't laugh at me,but I had a feeling that Andruw would be

a LEGEND by the time his career was over.I want to use one

name but I better not do it.A former Brave.....

[DJ_Money]

I saw him play 50+ times when he was in A Ball at Macon. He was amazing. What you see in Atlanta is nothing compared to what he did down here.

Hopefully, he'll find that old magic.

[Guest]

Well he is hiting 298 and having a great year...he just has

this something that few players have...I can't really explain

it.

[Admin]

I dont consider that something special. The guy has worlds of talent, but has been a disappointment IMO. I think he relies too much on his talent and doesnt work as hard as he could to be great.

[Guest]

Well he has somewhere around 50RBI and is the best defensive

CF in the league.Plus alot of HR's.

[Admin]

I am not saying he is a bad player or anything like that, in fact I think he has the potential to be a superstar, but until he improves his batting average, I am sorry but he wont be considered that in my book. If he ever learns to hit for average and keeps up his power and his plate discipline by continuing to get walks, he could be the best OF in the game bar none.