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This past week the Los Angeles Dodgers and outfielder Andruw Jones agreed to part ways. The question now is where, if anywhere, will Jones play in 2009? Jones signed a two-year, $36.2M contract with the Dodgers in December, 2007, ending his 12 year run with the Atlanta Braves. Jones??? salary for the 2009 season was slated to be $21.1M; under the terms of the separation agreement he???ll receive a base pay of $5M, with the balance being paid off over 15 years with no interest. In return for Jones waiving his full no trade clause, the Dodgers have agreed to release him by the end of spring training, with Jones then becoming a free agent. If Jones somehow rebounds and plays well during the spring, both parties by mutual agreement can withdraw the contract changes, whereas Jones will play, assumedly regularly, for the Dodgers in ???09 under the terms of his original contract. Andruw Jones burst into the national spotlight in Game One of the 1996 World Series at Yankee Stadium. Jones, as a 19 year old, tied the record set by Oakland catcher Gene Tenace in 1972 by homering in his first two World Series at bats. Jones would go on to finish fifth in the National League Rookie of the Year voting in 1997, and during his 11 full seasons in a Braves uniform averaged 155 games per year, with 33 homers and 100 RBI???s. He would make five All-Star appearances and garner ten consecutive Gold Gloves, tying Ken Griffey Jr and Hall of Famer Al Kaline for third all-time among outfielders. In 2005, at the age of 28, Jones put together his career year, with highs in homers with 51, winning a Silver Slugger award and finishing second in the MVP balloting, just 29 votes behind Albert Pujols. While Jones managed to make another All-Star appearance in 2006, his game began to show some ****. Following a good first half, including 20 homers and a .275 average, Jones batting average dropped to .249 in the second half, foreshadowing what as to come in 2007. In 2007 he hit .222 with only 26 home runs ??? his lowest total since his rookie year. The Braves, apparently seeing the beginning of the end for Jones, decided not to re-sign Jones, who left for the sun and fun in Los Angeles. The weather remained a constant throughout the summer, as it has for centuries in Southern California, but is certainly wasn???t fun for Jones. Playing in a career low 75 games, in part due to injuries, Jones set a Major League record for the lowest batting average in a season for a player with 200 or more at bats - .158. Remarkably Jones had just three home runs and 14 RBIs for the season. His batting average was above .200 just once all year, when he went 1-4 on Opening Day. Since the 2006 All-Star break, a span which includes 199 games and 1056 at bats, Jones has hit just .215. The re-structuring of Jones??? contract virtually assures the Dodgers re-opening negotiations Manny Ramirez. Assuming a deal can be reached, and assumptions are that one will, the list of remaining free agent outfielders is a long one. 31 at last count. The list runs the gamut of options, from the high profile/producing Type A (Adam Dunn, and Bobby Abreu), to the guys who likely will spend most of, if not all of, the season in the minor leagues (Justin Christian). There are also past-their-prime position players or designated hitters (Frank Thomas and Garrett Anderson) who may be worthy of a look. So, where does Jones fit? His almost unprecedented fall-off in production most certainly doesn???t warrant Jones receiving either $18M per season or a long-term deal, but with Scott Boras nearby, would there even be a consideration of less? There are many people, myself included, who have always thought of Jones as being overrated defensively. Borrowing a term the late Billy Martin used to describe his then young OF star Rickey Henderson, ???there isn???t enough mustard to cover that hot dog,??? Jones built a reputation around making easy plays look hard, and making just enough difficult plays to sell himself as a legitimate outfielder. But with Jones??? noticeably different physique possibly playing a part in his declining offensive numbers, what role does it play defensively? I believe a lot, as apparently did the Braves at this time last year when they decided to let Andruw walk. Scanning through the 30 Major League rosters, there really doesn???t appear to be too many options for Jones. The Angels have the money, although they recently resigned Juan Rivera to a three year deal, ideally to replace the departed Garrett Anderson in left field The Yankees need a centerfielder and have some money lying around, but they have Hideki Matsui trying to come back from injury. If Matsui is healthy he would go to left with Johnny Damon moving back to his old stomping ground in center. If Matsui can???t go defensively, then rookie prospect Austin Jackson will get a long look in the spring for the CF job. The Red Sox have money, but no outfield vacancy. The Mets have the cash, but also the game???s best defensive centerfielder in the form of Carlos Beltran. Unless Jones agrees to move to a corner OF spot, they appear an unlikely candidate. The Giants have expressed interest in Manny, so maybe they???ll turn their attention to Jones if Ramirez re-signs with the Dodgers. Until the Milton Bradley signing, the Cubs appeared as the most likely destination, in terms of money and need. Bottom line: the options for Jones are realistically few, and potentially none. While his career total of 371 homeruns is impressive at his age, nothing else about Jones jumps off the page and screams, ???Hall of Famer.??? To whit; one season with more than 170 hits. Two seasons with an average above .275. Even the sabermetric stat heads will make note of this: Jones has a career OPS+ of 111. That???s the same OPS+ as Nick Esasky, Julio Franco, Don Lock, Hal Morris and Kevin Seitzer. Three Hall of Fame players check in with a 111 career OPS+: Richie Ashburn, Frankie Frisch and George Kell ??? all of whom hit at or near the top of the order and whose primary job was to get on base, not drive runners in. The Baseball Reference.com career comparison feature lists as Jones??? closest contemporary Rocky Colavito, the strong armed Cleveland and Detroit outfielder who hit 374 career homers playing the prime seasons of his career in the pitching dominated 1960???s. Ranking second to Colavito is former Brave Ron Gant ??? an injury prone outfielder who treated fly balls like an IRS audit. With $5M in his pocket guaranteed for 2009, I see Jones taking a deal similar to the one Sammy Sosa signed with Texas before the 2007 season ??? a double-sided contract loaded with incentives but with no guaranteed money or a roster spot. If he can???t make whatever team signs him, he would have the option of taking the second half of the contract with him to Triple-A, or he could request his outright release. If his career is in fact over, what will Jones??? legacy be, if there is one? I think the perception of his legacy is smaller than his waistline; he was a good player on a successful team with many good players, with a couple of Hall of Famers thrown in for good measure. Like David Justice, consistent all along, even great for awhile, but in the big picture just small pieces to the puzzle. Adding to the problem is Jones??? performance in Winter Ball. Playing for Aguilas of the Dominican League, Jones played five games, going 3-16 (188) with eight strikeouts and then vanishing, last appearing a game on December 20th. It???s hard to say at this point whether the career of Jones is over, but it???s clearly in question, with the biggest question of all being what???s next? The next few weeks leading up to spring training will likely answer the question satisfactorily for us, but will it for Andruw? Following an uneventful high school and college career as a good field, no hit third baseman, Chuck Johnson went on to coach high school ball for 12 years, winning a state title in the process. Even more impressive, he managed to somehow not negatively influence three players who would go on to reach the Major Leagues. A long time SABR member and a contributing researcher at Retrosheet, Chuck spent three years in the Marketing and Sales dept of the Double-A Eastern League and is a proud member of the Minor League Alumni.