Jacque Jones facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Jacque Jones |
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Jones with the Chicago Cubs
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| Outfielder | ||||||||||||||
| Born: April 25, 1975 San Diego, California, U.S. |
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| debut | ||||||||||||||
| June 9, 1999, for the Minnesota Twins | ||||||||||||||
| Last appearance | ||||||||||||||
| June 10, 2008, for the Florida Marlins | ||||||||||||||
| MLB statistics | ||||||||||||||
| Batting average | .277 | |||||||||||||
| Home runs | 165 | |||||||||||||
| Runs batted in | 630 | |||||||||||||
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Medals
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Jacque Dewayne Jones (born April 25, 1975) is a former Major League Baseball (MLB) player. He was an outfielder for teams like the Minnesota Twins, Chicago Cubs, Detroit Tigers, and Florida Marlins. After playing, he also worked as a coach for the Washington Nationals.
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Early Life and College Baseball
Jacque Jones grew up in San Diego, California. He finished high school at San Diego High School in 1993. After that, he went to the University of Southern California (USC), where he had a great college baseball career.
In 1994, he was chosen as a first-team All-American outfielder for the USC Trojans. This means he was considered one of the best college baseball players in the country. In 1996, he was part of the U.S. Olympic Baseball team. This team won a bronze medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.
Jacque Jones's Professional Baseball Career
Playing for the Minnesota Twins
Jacque Jones was picked by the Minnesota Twins in the second round of the 1996 amateur draft. This means the Twins chose him to play for their team from a group of young players. He played in the minor leagues for three seasons. Then, in 1999, he joined the main MLB team.
He started playing in center field. Later, he moved to left field to make room for another player, Torii Hunter. From 2002 to 2003, Jacque batted over .300. This is a very good batting average. He also helped the Twins reach the playoffs during these years.
In 2005, the Twins had a very fast outfield with Jones, Hunter, and Shannon Stewart. Jacque moved to right field that year. He was known for hitting home runs, averaging 20 home runs each year from 2000 to 2005.
After the 2005 season, Jacque decided to leave the Twins. He signed a three-year deal with the Chicago Cubs in December 2005.
Time with the Chicago Cubs
On August 15, 2006, Jacque Jones hit a huge home run against famous pitcher Roger Clemens. The ball went over 440 feet! He finished the 2006 season strong. He had a .285 batting average and tied his personal best with 27 home runs.
After the 2006 season, some fans were unsure about Jacque's future with the Cubs. He stayed with the team for the start of the 2007 season. However, he didn't play as much as he wanted. The Cubs tried to trade him to other teams, but the deals didn't happen.
Playing for the Detroit Tigers
On November 12, 2007, Jacque Jones was traded to the Detroit Tigers. He started the 2008 season with the Tigers, but he didn't play well. He batted only .165 in his first 24 games. Because of this, the Tigers decided to release him on May 13, 2008. His best game with the Tigers was against the Texas Rangers. In that game, he hit his only home run for Detroit and also a triple.
With the Florida Marlins
On May 19, 2008, Jacque Jones signed a minor league deal with the Florida Marlins. A few days later, on May 23, he was added to the Marlins' main team. He played his first game for them in center field on May 25. However, he was released by the Marlins on June 20, 2008.
Cincinnati Reds and Return to Minnesota
In 2009, Jacque signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds. He tried to make the team during spring training, but he was cut before the season started.
On February 9, 2010, Jacque Jones signed another minor league contract, this time with his old team, the Minnesota Twins. He played in some exhibition games at the Twins' new stadium, Target Field. Fans gave him very loud cheers during his turns at bat.
After Playing Baseball
After retiring from playing, Jacque Jones was on the ballot for the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2014. However, he did not receive enough votes to be considered in future years.
Jacque then became a baseball coach. In 2012, he was hired as the hitting coach for the Class A Fort Wayne TinCaps by the San Diego Padres. In 2013, he was promoted to be the hitting coach for the Double-A San Antonio Missions. In 2014, he became the hitting coach for the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas, but he left that job during the season. In 2016, he was hired by the Washington Nationals as their assistant hitting coach.
Images for kids
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Jones with the Chicago Cubs
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Jacque Jones with Marlins in 2008.
