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Andruw Jones Signs With Japanese Team
Remember when I mentioned in my post yesterday about how the Dodgers will still be paying Andruw Jones in 2013? Well, the former Dodger is headed to Japan. Jones has signed a one-year $3.5 million contract with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles which are members of Japan’s Pacific League.
After his success in Atlanta, Andruw Jones never lived up to expectations with subsequent teams. Photo: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Jones has spent the last two seasons playing for the New York Yankees, and he appeared in 171 games during that span. Last season he couldn’t hit over the Mendoza Line, and he finished with a line of .197/.294/.408 with 14 homeruns and 34 RBIs in 269 plate appearances. The 35-year old outfielder will try to provide some pop for the Eagles next season as he says adieu to the MLB for now. Before failing as a Dodger, Andruw Jones was once one of the best center fielders in the game. He won ten consecutive Gold Glove Awards from 1998-2007 with the Atlanta Braves, and he was a five-time All-Star. He was originally signed by the Braves back in 1993 as an amateur free agent, and he made his MLB debut on August 15, 1996. The Dodgers signed Jones to a lucrative contract as a free agent after the 2007 season, and they are still paying for his one epic fiasco of a season with Los Angeles still to this day.
In fact, Jones was so bad in his one season played with the Dodgers that we at Lasorda’s Lair anointed him as the #2 L.A. Dodger Bum of All-Time. The signing of Andruw Jones by the Dodgers was one of the worst free agent signings in the history of Major League Baseball. You can read our complete documentation of his fall from grace and his uselessness as a Dodger in our previous post.
Jones has accumulated 434 career homeruns over the course of his 17-season career in the Majors. Will Jones attempt to return to the MLB after his season in Japan or will this be his final swan song? Either way, the Dodgers will finally get him off the books after 2013. The Dodgers agreed to restructure his two-year $36.2 million dollar deal in exchange for his release after the 2008 season.