Todd Barton Jones (born April 24, 1968) is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher. He batted left-handed and threw right-handed. He was an effective

middle reliever In baseball, a middle reliever or middle relief pitcher, is a relief pitcher who typically pitches during the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings of a standard baseball game. In leagues with no designated hitter, such as in the National League pri ...

for several teams and also filled the role of closer, most notably with the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

for whom he earned 235 saves. On September 16, , Jones became the 21st member of the 300- save club during his second stint with the Tigers.

Baseball career

Jones graduated from Osborne High School in Marietta, Georgia and attended Jacksonville State University in Alabama. He was drafted by the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

in the first round of

1989 Major League Baseball draft First-round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1989 Major League Baseball draft on June 5. Supplemental first round selections Other notable players * Brian Hunter, 2nd round, 35th overall by the Houston Astros * Ti ...

and made his major league debut during the season. Initially a setup reliever, Jones started being used as a closer for the Astros in the 1995 season. His best years came with the Detroit Tigers from –, when he logged 142 saves. On April 22, 1999, Jones earned career save number 100. On September 27, , Jones threw the last official pitch at Tiger Stadium, striking out Carlos Beltrán as the Tigers defeated the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

8–2. Jones' tenure as a Detroit Tiger peaked in 2000, when he converted 42 saves in 46 attempts, made his first and only AL All-Star team, and won the AL Rolaids Relief Man Award. The 42 saves established a new Tigers team record, surpassing John Hiller's 38 saves in 1973. The record would stand until 2011, when it was broken by José Valverde. Jones could not continue his success into the 2001 season. After blowing 6 of his first 17 save opportunities, Jones lost his closer role and the Tigers traded him to the

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

on July 28, 2001. After the 2001 season, Jones became a free agent and signed with the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

. While playing for the Rockies in April , Jones made remarks criticized as anti- gay comments during a discussion of the play ''

Take Me Out A take is a single continuous recorded performance. The term is used in film and music to denote and track the stages of production. Film In cinematography, a take refers to each filmed "version" of a particular shot or "setup". Takes of each s ...

''. Jones publicly apologized, but did not retract his comments. He shifted to the Boston Red Sox midway through the season. He made his first career postseason appearance that year, pitching to three batters in Game 6 of the

ALCS The American League Championship Series (ALCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. It is contested by the two winners of the American ...

as the third Red Sox pitcher against the New York Yankees. In the sixth inning, he allowed a hit while garnering a strikeout and a walk before being taken out for

Alan Embree Alan Duane Embree (born January 23, 1970) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher. Embree played for the Cleveland Indians (1992–1996), Atlanta Braves (1997–1998), Arizona Diamondbacks (1998), San Francisco Giants (1999–2001), Chic ...

. The Red Sox won the game 9-6 with six pitchers used, but they lost the ALCS the next night. Jones left the Red Sox after the season. Following a season spent with the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

and

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

, Jones signed a one-year contract with the Florida Marlins. After an injury to incumbent closer

Guillermo Mota Guillermo Reynoso Mota (born July 25, 1973) is a Dominican former professional baseball relief pitcher in Major League Baseball. In his career, he pitched for the Montreal Expos, Los Angeles Dodgers, Florida Marlins, Cleveland Indians, New Yor ...

, Jones took on the role for the first time since 2001. He finished the season with a 2.10 ERA and 40 saves, surpassing 200 career saves during this season. On December 8, 2005, Jones signed a two-year contract to return to the Tigers. In , he also participated in the inaugural World Baseball Classic. On May 21, 2006, he became the Detroit Tigers' all-time leader in saves, passing

Mike Henneman Michael Alan Henneman (born December 11, 1961) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher with a 10-year career from 1987 to 1996. He played for the Detroit Tigers and Texas Rangers, both of the American League, and the Houston Astros of the Nati ...

. Jones saved 37 games for the 2006 Tigers, who made the postseason for the first time since 1987. He would appear in seven postseason games for the Tigers: two in the

ALDS In Major League Baseball, the American League Division Series (ALDS) determines which two teams from the American League will advance to the American League Championship Series. The Division Series consists of two best-of-five series, featuring ea ...

, three in the

, and two in the World Series, pitching the ninth inning in each occasion. He converted four saves and allowed one total run (unearned) throughout the postseason. His last postseason appearance was Game 2 of the 2006 World Series, as he finished the only victory that the Tigers would garner against the St. Louis Cardinals. Jones retired with a postseason ERA of 0.00 in seven innings. On September 16, 2007, Jones worked out of a bases-loaded ninth-inning jam against the Minnesota Twins to earn his 300th career save, becoming the 21st member of baseball's

300 save club In Major League Baseball (MLB), the 300 save club is the group of pitchers who have recorded 300 or more regular-season saves in their careers. Most commonly a relief pitcher ("reliever" or " closer") earns a save by being the final pitcher of a ...

. The Tigers re-signed Jones to a one-year contract for the 2008 season. On July 27, Jones lost his role as Tigers' closer to Fernando Rodney. On September 25, 2008, the 40-year old Jones announced his retirement from Major League Baseball.

Pitching style

Jones was a finesse pitcher and showed good durability. In every season from through , he pitched in at least 51 games. His main pitch was a low-90s fastball that he could sink or cut, and he pitched to contact. He only had one season (2000) in which he recorded more strikeouts than innings pitched. He also incorporated an occasional low-70s curve ball. Though he didn't have overpowering stuff, he kept hitters off-balance and rarely got rattled. He was a ground-ball pitcher, allowing only 22% fly balls over his career versus 47.2% ground balls.

Personal life

Jones is a devout Christian, and is known for using Contemporary Christian music when entering from the bullpen. During the 2006 playoffs, he entered to "Last One Standing" by MercyMe. Since 2002, Jones has been writing a weekly column, "The Closer", for '' The Sporting News'' and Jones was on the cover of the baseball preview issue with the caption "Don't Tell columnist Todd Jones but (Beware of The Tigers)". Jones currently resides in Pell City, Alabama with his wife Michelle and his son Alex (born October 7, 1994) and daughter Abby (born May 22, 1997). He currently works as an adviser for the local high school and middle school boys baseball teams, and occasionally appears as a guest analyst for the Detroit Tigers.

Awards and accomplishments

* All-Star (2000) * AL Relief Man of the Year (2000) * Led American League in saves (42 in 2000), which also established a Detroit Tigers' single-season record. The record stood until 2011, when it was broken by José Valverde. * Along with

Juan Rincón Juan Manuel Rincón (born January 23, 1979) is a Venezuelan professional baseball coach and former relief pitcher. Rincón bats and throws right-handed. He throws a low 90s fastball and a mid to low 80s slider. In his career, Rincón posted a .208 ...

, led MLB with 11 relief wins (2004) * Leads Florida Marlins in consecutive save conversions (27, 2005) * Ranked 14th in all-time saves (319) when he retired, and ranks 21st as of 2019 * Ranks first all-time among Detroit Tigers relievers with 235 saves * Made first World Series appearance in second stint with Tigers (2006) * Appeared on the cover of '' The Sporting News'' (March/April 2007)

References

External links