Adam Jones - Fantasy News & Updates
Adam Jones - Fantasy News & Updates
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Owners who snagged Jones late on draft day had to love the season's first few months, when it looked as though the center fielder could do no wrong. He sported a whopping .372 with 11 homers and four steals heading into June. From then on, however, pitchers took advantage of his free-swinging ways, as Jones struggled through a sluggish summer before an ankle sprain cost him almost all of September.
This puts an end to the season for Jones, who has been on the DL since Sept. 2 with a sprained left ankle. After emerging with a breakout performance in the first half, Jones returned to earth down the stretch, but he still finished with a .277 average, 19 homers, 70 RBIs, 83 runs scored and 10 stolen bases.
The move seems to signal the likelihood of Jones being shut down for the rest of the 2009 season, with a surging Felix Pie serving as the regular center fielder in his absence.
The Orioles will likely use Felix Pie in center field for the majority of games down the stretch and fill the gap in left field with a combination of Luke Scott and Nolan Reimold. Jones may well be tougher to replace in the batting order, where he ranked second in home runs (19), runs (83) and RBIs (70) for the Orioles. Bench the breakout outfielder until hearing otherwise.
Jones landed awkwardly as he attempted to get to first base and was removed during a pitching change. "He has a sprain," said Orioles skipper Dave Trembley. "We'll have a better idea how long he's doing to be out [Wednesday]. He did have an X-ray and the X-ray is negative, but I know it's a pretty good sprain." Jones went hitless in four at-bats before giving way to Jeff Fiorentino. If Jones is forced to miss any time, Felix Pie would take over in center and Ty Wigginton would likely be the man in left field.
Felix Pie returns to the bench and Jones should return to owners' everyday lineups. Jones has had a great all-around year, hitting .283 with 19 homers, 70 RBIs, 81 runs and nine steals.
Jones still can't run sprints or take batting practice, so he has an uncertain timetable. After hurting his back on an awkward swing on Aug. 23, Jones has worked with head athletic trainer Richie Bancells to calm his spasms. "I think Richie was just watching for better range of motion," manager Dave Trembley said. "He told me that he felt all the spasms have gone. There's some soreness there..." As has been the case throughout Jones' absence, Felix Pie took the start in center field on Thursday, going 2-for-5.
Jones suffered mild mid-back spasms after running to first base on a single in the first inning of Baltimore's Aug. 23 contest. He's also sat out pregame batting practice and running drills and isn't expected back Wednesday. Felix Pie took his second straight start in center field on Tuesday.
Jones refrained from batting practice and running drills on Monday and will hope to resume normal duties Tuesday, though it remains to be seen when he'll return. "My back hurts, so I've just got to deal with it," said Jones in an abrupt media briefing. "That's all I know. It shouldn't be anything worse than that. It should just be a back spasm, I hope." His replacement was Felix Pie, who went hitless in three at-bats.
Jones had an immediate impact on the game but didn't get to play much longer. He singled in a run in the first inning but was visibly uncomfortable once he made it to first base. The Orioles removed him in the bottom half of the inning and diagnosed his injury as a mild mid-back muscle spasm. Jones, who was selected as Baltimore's representative to the All-Star Game, will be re-evaluated sometime next week.
August has been unkind to Jones, as he's hitting just .233 and hasn't gone yard in two weeks. His breakthrough season remains fully intact, but it's safe to say that more was expected out of Jones when he busted out of the gate with a .359 average in April.
Felix Pie started in center and hit eighth. Jones is batting .381/.409/.714 with two home runs, five RBIs and a steal in his last five games, so this is most likely just a rest day.
August could be shaping up as another big month for Jones, who made a name for himself in April (.359 AVG, 4 HR) and May (.333, 7 HR) but returned to earth shortly thereafter. In five games this month, the O's center fielder has gone 8-for-21 (.385) with two long balls, a double, five RBIs and one stolen base.
After going homerless from June 16-July 12, Jones has regained his power stroke in a big way, sending six balls screaming out of the park, including four bombs in his last seven contests. Jones has kept his average right around .300 for most of the year and is on the cusp of true five-category dominance.
Jones has hit safely in five of six games as he flirts with a .300 batting average. There's no doubting his power, even with the singles on Saturday. He bashed a homer in three straight games from July 27-29 to bring his season total to 17. He should reach 20 by the end of the year and his eight steals give him a great shot to become a 20/15 player in '09.
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