Gary Wayne Jones (born November 11, 1960) is an American

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

and a former

player Player may refer to: Role or adjective * Player (game), a participant in a game or sport ** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games ** Athlete, a player in sports ** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

in minor League baseball. As of , he is the third-base coach of the Detroit Tigers of the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

. Formerly, Jones was the third-base coach of the Chicago Cubs from 2014 to 2017 and the first-base coach of the Oakland Athletics in 1998. Most recently, he was the manager of the

Lehigh Valley IronPigs The Lehigh Valley IronPigs are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and are named in reference to pig iron, used in the ...

, Triple-A International League affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies (2018–2019, 2021).

Career

The Cubs originally signed Jones as a 21-year-old

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

infielder in 1982 out of the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...

. Jones played for seven years in the Cubs and Athletics farm systems, including two seasons with the Triple-A Tacoma Tigers, and batted .283 with nine

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s in 899 minor league games between 1982 and 1989. He batted

left-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subject ...

, threw

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

, stood tall and weighed . After retiring as a player, he was a manager in the Oakland,

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

, and

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

organizations. From 1990 to 1997, 1999–2001 and 2003–06, Jones led teams in the International League, Pacific Coast League, Southern League,

Midwest League The Midwest League is a Minor League Baseball league established in 1947 and based in the Midwestern United States. A Class A league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseball's 2021 reorganizat ...

, and

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fille ...

. He managed the

Madison Muskies The Madison Muskies were a Class A minor league baseball team that played in the Midwest League from 1982 to 1993 in Madison, Wisconsin. In 1993, the team relocated to Comstock Park, Michigan and became today's West Michigan Whitecaps. The Mu ...

Huntsville Stars The Huntsville Stars were a Minor League Baseball team that played in Huntsville, Alabama, from 1985 to 2014. They competed in the Southern League as the Double-A affiliate of Major League Baseball's Oakland Athletics from 1985 to 1998 and Mil ...

Edmonton Trappers The Edmonton Trappers were a minor league baseball team in Edmonton, Alberta. They were a part of the Triple-A level in the Pacific Coast League, ending with the 2004 season. Their home games were played at Telus Field in downtown Edmonton. T ...

Pawtucket Red Sox The Pawtucket Red Sox, known colloquially as the PawSox, were a professional minor league baseball club based in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. From 1973 to 2020, the team was a member of the International League and served as the Triple-A affiliate ...

Fort Wayne Wizards A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

and

Mobile BayBears The Mobile BayBears were a Minor League Baseball team based in Mobile, Alabama, United States. The team, which played in the Southern League, served as the Double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres (1997–2006), Arizona Diamondbacks (2007–2 ...

. He served the Red Sox as coordinator of minor league instruction in . Jones led the Stars to the Southern League championship in 1994 and the Trappers to back-to-back Pacific Coast League championships in 1996 and 1997. He also won Manager-of-the-Year Awards in 1991 (Madison), 1994 (Huntsville), 1996 and 1997 (both with Edmonton). In his first season with Lehigh Valley, he led the 2018 IronPigs to an 84–56

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of matc ...

and the International League North Division championship, although his team was eliminated in the opening round of the Governors' Cup playoffs. Through 2018, his career mark as a minor league manager was 1,124–1,028 (.522). Prior to his appointment to the

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

coaching staff of then-Cub manager

Rick Renteria Richard Avina Renteria (born December 25, 1961) is a Mexican-American former professional baseball infielder and former manager of the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). Renteria played in parts of five seasons bet ...

, Jones spent seven years as the roving minor league

infield Infield is a sports term whose definition depends on the sport in whose context it is used. Baseball In baseball, the diamond, as well as the area immediately beyond it, has both grass and dirt, in contrast to the more distant, usually grass-c ...

instructor for the San Diego Padres, where Renteria had been a Major League coach. He was retained when

Joe Maddon Joseph John Maddon (born February 8, 1954) is an American former professional baseball manager and coach. He has managed the Tampa Bay Rays, Chicago Cubs, and Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball. Maddon began his coaching career in MLB ...

replaced Renteria as manager in October 2014 for the season, and was the third-base coach for the 2016 Cubs'

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

and

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

championship team. In December 2021, Jones was hired to manage the

Toledo Mud Hens The Toledo Mud Hens are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers. They are located in Toledo, Ohio, and play their home games at Fifth Third Field. A Mud Hens team has played in ...

, the Detroit Tigers Triple-A team. On January 27, 2022, Jones was named first base coach for the Tigers' major league team, replacing Kimera Bartee who died suddenly in late 2021.

References

External links

MWLguide.com
- minor league managerial record : {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Gary 1960 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American people African-American baseball coaches African-American baseball managers African-American baseball players Arizona Fall League Arkansas Razorbacks baseball players Chicago Cubs coaches Detroit Tigers coaches Geneva Cubs players Huntsville Stars players Lehigh Valley IronPigs managers Lodi Crushers players Major League Baseball first base coaches Major League Baseball third base coaches Oakland Athletics coaches Pawtucket Red Sox managers People from Longview, Texas Pittsfield Cubs players Quad Cities Cubs players Tacoma Tigers players