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Andruw Rudolf Jones (; born April 23, 1977) is a Curaçaoan former professional baseball center fielder who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), most notably for the Atlanta Braves. He also played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Texas Rangers, Chicago White Sox, and New York Yankees, and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles. Jones was a strong defensive player for much of his career, winning the Rawlings Gold Glove Award for outfielders every year from 1998 through 2007. He had a strong throwing arm in addition to his elite fielding. He was an MLB All-Star five times, and he won both the Hank Aaron Award and a Silver Slugger Award for outfielders in 2005.
Jones made his MLB debut during the 1996 season with the Atlanta Braves. In the 1996 World Series, he became the youngest player ever to hit a home run in the postseason, and just the second player ever to homer in his first two World Series at bats. The following season, he finished fifth in voting for Rookie of the Year. He continued to improve his offensive production the next two seasons, and in 2000, he batted .303 with 36 home runs and 104 runs batted in (RBIs), making his first All-Star team. Jones started to draw many comparisons to Willie Mays and was considered one of the top in baseball. He proved to be a top defensive player, leading all center fielders in putouts and total zone runs five years in a row from 1998 to 2002. In 2001, he again hit more than 30 home runs and drove in 104 runs but his average dipped to .251 while his increased. Jones improved with All-Star seasons in 2002 and 2003. In 2004, he failed to hit at least 30 home runs for the first time since 1999 and exceeded 100 strikeouts, which became a regular occurrence thereafter. In 2005, he led the National League (NL) with 51 home runs and 128 RBIs, finishing second to Albert Pujols for NL Most Valuable Player. In subsequent seasons, his average continued to dip and his strikeouts increased. After a productive season in 2006, including a career-high 129 RBIs, in 2007 Jones had his weakest season to that point, batting just .222. During his time with Atlanta, Jones became one of the youngest players in MLB history to reach 300 career home runs.
After the 2007 season, Jones signed with the Dodgers as a free agent to a two-year deal, worth $36.2 million. However, Jones struggled with the Dodgers, batting just .158 with three home runs and 14 RBIs. Shortly after the season, Jones was released. Jones concluded his MLB career with brief stints for the Rangers, White Sox, and Yankees, transitioning from a starting center fielder to designated hitter and backup outfielder role. Jones hit his 400th career home run in 2010 while playing for the White Sox.
Jones was named the manager of Team Netherlands for the 2026 World Baseball Classic, which will take place in Miami in March 2026.
In Game 1 of the 1996 World Series on October 20, Jones was able to demonstrate his talents on the national stage. He connected for two to left field on his first two as the Braves routed the New York Yankees 12–1. Jones became the youngest player ever to homer in the World Series at the age of 19 years, 180 days, breaking Mickey Mantle's record of 20 years, 362 days — on what would have been Mantle's 65th birthday. Jones joined Gene Tenace as the only other player to hit home runs in his first two World Series at bats. Tenace did it in 1972 with the Oakland Athletics.
Jones became the Braves' everyday right fielder in 1997. Jones hit his first home run of the season against Jeff McCurry of the Rockies. Jones had his second multi-homer game against the Cubs on July 22. On August 31, Jones went 3-for-3 with a home run and five runs batted in a game against the Boston Red Sox. Jones finished his rookie season with a .231 batting average, 18 home runs, and 70 runs batted in. Jones also showed his speed by stealing 20 bases. He finished fifth in Rookie of the Year voting. In 1998, he moved to center field nearly full-time and had a much more encouraging season. He hit his 30th home run of the season against Florida on September 13. He also won his first of ten consecutive Gold Glove Awards. In the National League Division Series, Jones went 0-for-9 but drew 3 walks. The Braves won the series against the Cubs. In the 1998 NLCS against the San Diego Padres, Jones batted .273 with a home run and two RBIs. However, The Braves lost the series in six games.
Whether he was in the batter's box or gliding under a fly ball to make an easy basket catch, Jones played the game in a very relaxed manner. This temporarily earned him the ire of manager Bobby Cox in June 1998 in an incident in which Cox pulled Jones out of a game, in the midst of an inning, because he felt Jones had lazily allowed a single to drop in center field. Jones went on to hit .271 with 31 home runs and 90 runs batted in and stole 27 bases. Still just 22 years old, Jones had similar numbers in 1999. He had a breakout season with his bat in 2000 with career highs up until that point in batting average (.303), home runs (36), and RBIs (104). He also earned his first All-Star Game appearance. He also led the National League in Plate Appearances (729) and At Bats (656). Jones struggled in the National League Division Series against the Cardinals. He went 1 for 9 with a home run. The Braves lost the series.
However, in 2001, Jones' batting average fell and his went up. Jones finished with 34 home runs and 104 RBIs but his average dropped to only .251 and he struck out 142 times. By now, Jones had gained nearly 30 pounds since arriving in the Major Leagues, greatly diminishing his speed on the basepaths (he would not steal more than 11 bases after 2001). He maintained a similar batting performance in 2002, but was still playing superb defense. On September 7, he belted two home runs in his last two at-bats. In his first two at-bats on September 10, he belted two more home runs. He became the 11th player in MLB history to homer in four straight at-bats. Then on September 25, Jones belted three home runs against the Phillies. Jones became the first Braves player to hit three home runs in a game since Jeff Blauser did it in 1992. Jones was named to his second All Star team. He ended the season with 35 home runs and 94 RBIs.
In 2003, with the power-hitting Gary Sheffield in the line-up, Jones achieved a new career high-water mark in RBIs, with 116. Jones made his third All Star team and homered in the game. The American League beat the National League, 7–6. In the 2004 season, he took a step backward when he hit fewer than 30 homers and struck out 147 times. During the season, Jones was the subject of trade rumors.
Jones hit a major league-leading 51 home runs, surpassing Hank Aaron's and Eddie Mathews' single-season club record, and winning the Babe Ruth Home Run Award. He also led the National League with a career-high 128 RBI. Jones' torrid hitting in the summer, especially while teammate Chipper Jones was out with an injury, helped carry the Braves to their 14th consecutive division championship. He finished just behind St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols in the 2005 NL MVP vote. In the 2005, National League Divisional Series against the Houston Astros, Jones hit .471 with a home run and five RBIs. However, the Astros took the series, 3–1.
Jones matched his career high with 6 runs batted in on July 18 against the Cardinals. He also went 5 for 5 with 2 home runs. On August 29, in a game against the Giants, Jones drove in 3 runs, which gave him his 1000th career RBI. On September 26, in a game against the New York Mets, Jones hit his 40th home run of the season. He became the first hitter in Atlanta's history to have consecutive seasons of at least 40 homers. Jones finished the 2006 season with 41 home runs and 129 RBIs. Jones also became more selective at the plate (82 walks, as compared to 64 the prior season), which helped him score 107 runs during 2006, an increase of 12 over the prior year and his most in a single season since 2000. He won his ninth consecutive Gold Glove award. The Braves finished with a 79–83 record and missed the postseason for the first time since 1990.
On April 30, Jones hit a three-run walk-off home run against the Philadelphia Phillies. On May 28, Jones hit his 350th career homer off Chris Capuano. After the All-Star break, Jones continued to have productive power numbers; however, his batting average remained poor. He was honored with a Fielding Bible Award as the best fielding center fielder in MLB. Jones finished the 2007 season with 26 home runs and 94 RBIs. On the downside, Jones hit only .222 and struck out 138 times.
On October 2, the Braves announced they would not be bringing Jones back for the 2008 season.
Jones was put on the disabled list for the first time in his entire career on May 25, 2008. He had knee surgery after injuring his knee during batting practice earlier that day. On July 27, Dodgers manager Joe Torre benched Jones and said that he would only be used as a spot starter in the future. At that time, Jones had a .166 batting average, two home runs, 12 RBIs, and 68 strikeouts in 187 at-bats.
On September 13, 2008, Jones was put on the 60-day disabled list, ending his season with the Dodgers. Jones finished the season with a .158 batting average, just three home runs, and 14 RBI. Jones stated that he did not wish to return to the Dodgers in 2009, saying that the Los Angeles fans did not give him a fair chance.
During the off-season, the Dodgers reached an agreement with Jones to trade or release him before spring training in exchange for a deferral of some of the remaining money due on his contract. On January 15, 2009, Jones was officially released by the Dodgers. Dodgers Release Andruw Jones
He was originally intended to be a pinch-hitter for the Rangers, but found a starting outfield role due to an injury to Josh Hamilton. Jones would go 3-for-5 in his Rangers debut with an RBI and two runs scored. By the end of April, Jones was batting .344 with three home runs and six runs batted in.
Jones was also faced with an opportunity to play against his old club, the Dodgers. Jones played two games against them on June 13 and 14, homering in each game. On July 4, Jones went 2 for 5 with a home run and 4 runs batted in against the Rays. On July 8, in a game against the Angels, Jones hit three home runs and drove in four runs in an 8–1 win. It was his second career three-homer game. Jones had a chance to hit his fourth home run of the game in his final two at-bats, but he popped out and struck out. "I was thinking about it. I tried. I just didn't get it done," Jones said. "I'm just happy we won." Jones ultimately hit only .214 for the season, but did have 17 home runs in 82 games.
He finished the year with nineteen home runs in 278 at-bats. He runs scored, had 48 RBI and 64 base hits in 107 games, the most games he appeared in since 2007.
Jones re-signed with the Yankees on December 30, 2011, signing a one-year deal worth $2 million. He was slated to be a backup in 2012. However, due to Brett Gardner's DL stint, Jones received more starts than anticipated. Jones played very well in the first half of the season, hitting 12 home runs in his first 62 games, including three over the course of a doubleheader in Boston, but in August and September, he hit only .139 with two home runs over his final 32 games.
Jones was also known for his speed early in his career. In fact, his speed earned him the last playoff spot on the Braves' roster in 1996. Jones stole 20 or more bases from 1997 to 2000. However, his speed declined as he hit for more power. Jones never stole 10 bases after he stole 11 in 2001. This could also be attributed to a noticeable weight gain.
Jones also owned the lowest batting average (since broken by Jose Bautista in 2010), slugging percentage, on-base percentage (OBP), and runs scored in a season for a hitter that belted 50+ home runs in a season. Jones hit 51 in 2005 but batted just .263, with a .575 slugging percentage, .347 OBP, and 95 runs scored.
From 1998 to 2007, Jones won 10 consecutive Gold Gloves. His 10 Gold Gloves for an outfielder ranks him in a tie for third (behind Willie Mays and Roberto Clemente each with 12) with Al Kaline, Ichiro Suzuki, and Ken Griffey Jr. for most Gold Gloves won by an outfielder. Jones is also one of five center fielders to record at least 400 in a season six times; the others are Willie Mays, Richie Ashburn, Kirby Puckett, and Max Carey. Jones has been ranked by Fangraphs as the most valuable defensive outfielder in baseball history.
Two years later, in 2015, Jones was selected to play with the national team as a first baseman for the 2015 Premier12. Over five games, he hit .250, with four hits and two RBI. Jones later announced that those were his final games as a player.
Jones was named the manager of Team Netherlands for the 2026 World Baseball Classic, which will take place in Miami in March 2026.
Jones married Nicole Derick. They are the parents of one son and one daughter. Son Druw Jones was a top prospect in the 2022 MLB draft and was selected second overall by the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Early on the morning of Christmas, December 25, 2012, Jones was arrested for battery after police officers responded to a domestic disturbance call between him and his wife Nicole in Duluth, Georgia, near Atlanta. A police report said Jones allegedly put his hands around her neck and threatened to kill her. He was released on $2,400 bond late that morning. Nicole Jones filed for divorce in early January 2013. His wife later withdrew the action for divorce and the couple attempted to reconcile, though Jones eventually pleaded guilty, paid a fine, and was placed on probation.
Jones and his wife supported Jaden's Ladder, a nonprofit organization that assists survivors of domestic violence.
Jones was inducted into the Atlanta Braves Hall of Fame in 2016. His uniform number, 25, was retired by the team on September 9, 2023.
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