Garrett Thomas Jones is a Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 outfielder

Outfielder

Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...

/first baseman

First baseman

First base, or 1B, is the first of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a baserunner in order to score a run for that player's team...

 for the Pittsburgh Pirates

Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...

.

In 1999, Jones graduated from Victor J. Andrew High School

Victor J. Andrew High School

Victor J. Andrew High School, Andrew, or VJA, is a public four-year high school located in Tinley Park, Illinois, a southwest suburb of Chicago, Illinois, in the United States...

 in Tinley Park

Tinley Park, Illinois

Tinley Park is a village located primarily in Cook County, Illinois, United States with a small portion in Will County. The population was 48,401 at the 2000 census, and 58,322 in the 2007 census. It is one of the fastest growing suburbs south of Chicago...

, Illinois.

Jones' nicknames include "G.I. Jones", a play on G.I. Joe

G.I. Joe

G.I. Joe is a line of action figures produced by the toy company Hasbro. The initial product offering represented four of the branches of the U.S. armed forces with the Action Soldier , Action Sailor , Action Pilot , Action Marine and later on, the Action Nurse...

, "GFJ" for "Garrett (Freakin') Jones", "Legend", and "God" .

Minor Leagues

He was drafted by the Atlanta Braves

Atlanta Braves

The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....

 in the 14th round of the 1999 Major League Baseball Draft

1999 Major League Baseball Draft

The 1999 First-Year Player Draft, Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft of high school and college baseball players, was held on June 2 and 3, 1999...

, but was released after three seasons in the Braves' minor league

Minor league baseball

Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...

 system. He signed with the Minnesota Twins

Minnesota Twins

The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...

 on May 24, .

From 2005-2008, he played for the Rochester Red Wings

Rochester Red Wings

The Rochester Red Wings are a minor league baseball team based in Rochester, New York. The team plays in the International League and is the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins major-league club. The Red Wings play in Frontier Field, located in downtown Rochester.The Red Wings were an...

, the Twins' AAA affiliate. Jones made his major league debut against Cleveland

Cleveland Indians

The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...

 on May 15, , recording his first hit

Hit (baseball)

In baseball statistics, a hit , also called a base hit, is credited to a batter when the batter safely reaches first base after hitting the ball into fair territory, without the benefit of an error or a fielder's choice....

, a single

Single (baseball)

In baseball, a single is the most common type of base hit, accomplished through the act of a batter safely reaching first base by hitting a fair ball and getting to first base before a fielder puts him out...

 off Paul Byrd

Paul Byrd

Paul Gregory Byrd is an American professional baseball right-handed starting pitcher who is currently a free agent. He pitched in Major League Baseball from 1995 to 2009. He is known as being the "nicest guy in baseball"...

 in the seventh inning.

Majors

After appearing in only 15 games with the Minnesota Twins, Jones became a free agent at the end of the season and signed a minor league contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates

Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...

. He earned an invitation to Spring Training

Spring training

In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives existing team players practice time prior to competitive play...

 with the Pirates, but, despite an impressive performance, did not make the Pirates roster.

On June 30, his contract was bought by the Pirates, and he was called up to take the roster spot that was vacated when Eric Hinske

Eric Hinske

Eric Scott Hinske is a Major League Baseball outfielder, first baseman, and third baseman currently an Atlanta Braves organization...

 was traded to the New York Yankees

New York Yankees

The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...

. After being called up to the Pirates MLB roster, Jones hit ten home runs in his first month with the club and was named the National League's Rookie of the Month for July 2009.

On April 5, 2010, against the Los Angeles Dodgers

Los Angeles Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...

, Garrett Jones hit two home runs in his first two at bats, becoming the 6th Pirate to hit two home runs on Opening Day. While the first was long into right field, landing in the Allegheny River, the second cleared the left field wall.

He finished 2010 with 145 hits, scored 64 runs, hit 34 doubles, hit 1 triple, hit 21 home runs, batted in 86 runs, walked 53 times, struck out 123 times, stole 7 bases, had a .247 average, a .306 OBP, and a .414 slugging percentage in 592 at bats.

On August 16, 2011 Jones crushed a pitch from Arthur Rhodes into the river to give the Pirates a walk-off 5-4 victory.

External links