Mack Jones
Encyclopedia
Mack F. Jones nicknamed "Mack The Knife
", was a Major League Baseball
left fielder
who played for the Milwaukee & Atlanta Braves
(1961–1967), Cincinnati Reds
(1968) and Montreal Expos
(1969–1971). He batted left-handed and threw right-handed.
A native of Atlanta, Georgia
, Jones was signed by the Milwaukee Braves as a non-draft amateur agent in 1958. In his major-league debut, on July 13, 1961, Jones tied a "modern" (post-1900) National League
record by collecting four hits, (three singles
and a double
) in his first game.
Jones' most productive season came in 1965, when he batted
.262 with 31 home run
s and 75 runs batted in. Jones teamed up that year with Hank Aaron, Eddie Mathews
, Joe Torre
, Felipe Alou and Gene Oliver
, as the Braves set a National League record with six 20-home run hitters in one season. When the Braves moved to Jones' native Atlanta in 1966, he hit 23 homers despite a shoulder injury. In 1967, he was traded to Cincinnati.
In the 1968 MLB expansion draft, Jones was the second player selected by the Montreal Expos (the fourth pick overall), behind Manny Mota
.
On April 8, 1969 at Shea Stadium
in Flushing, New York
, playing the Mets
, history was made. Jones, along with Don Hahn
and Rusty Staub
, took the outfield
in the bottom of the first inning for the first-day Expos. The trio made up the Expos' first outfield
in Montreal franchise history; Jones played left field for the Expos, Hahn
was the first Expo ever to play center field and Staub
to ever play right field.
Six days later, on April 14, 1969, Jones hit a three-run home run and two-run triple
in the Expos' first home victory as a franchise, an 8-7 win over the St. Louis Cardinals
at Jarry Park
. The home run came with Staub and Don Bosch
on base and was the very first to be hit in a Major League regular season game in Canada
. Jones finished that season with a career-high .270 batting average, 22 homers
and 79 runs batted in. So popular was Jones in Montreal that the left-field bleachers in Jarry Park
were nicknamed "Jonesville."
In an 11-year career, Jones was a .252 hitter with 133 home runs, 415 RBI, 485 runs, 132 double
s, 31 triple
s, and 65 stolen base
s in 1002 games.
Mack Jones died in Atlanta from complications with stomach cancer
. He was 65 years old.
A former Triple-A
Syracuse Chiefs outfielder, Mack Jones was inducted into the Syracuse Baseball Wall of Fame in 2000. He had one of the best seasons ever by a Syracuse baseball player in 1964, when he batted .317 with 15 doubles, 18 triples, 39 home runs and 102 runs batted in. He holds modern-day single-season Syracuse records for runs (111), total bases (337), RBIs, triples and home runs, all set in 1964. Jones was part of a famed Syracuse Chiefs outfield that season that included future major-league stars Wille Horton and Jim Northrup.
Mack the Knife
"Mack the Knife" or "The Ballad of Mack the Knife", originally "Die Moritat von Mackie Messer", is a song composed by Kurt Weill with lyrics by Bertolt Brecht for their music drama Die Dreigroschenoper, or, as it is known in English, The Threepenny Opera. It premiered in Berlin in 1928 at the...
", was 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...
left fielder
Left fielder
In baseball, a left fielder is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound...
who played for the Milwaukee & 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....
(1961–1967), Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....
(1968) and Montreal Expos
Montreal Expos
The Montreal Expos were a Major League Baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec from 1969 through 2004, holding the first MLB franchise awarded outside the United States. After the 2004 season, MLB moved the Expos to Washington, D.C. and renamed them the Nationals.Named after the Expo 67 World's...
(1969–1971). He batted left-handed and threw right-handed.
A native of Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
, Jones was signed by the Milwaukee Braves as a non-draft amateur agent in 1958. In his major-league debut, on July 13, 1961, Jones tied a "modern" (post-1900) National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
record by collecting four hits, (three singles
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...
and a double
Double (baseball)
In baseball, a double is the act of a batter striking the pitched ball and safely reaching second base without being called out by the umpire, without the benefit of a fielder's misplay or another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....
) in his first game.
Jones' most productive season came in 1965, when he batted
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
.262 with 31 home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
s and 75 runs batted in. Jones teamed up that year with Hank Aaron, Eddie Mathews
Eddie Mathews
Edwin Lee "Eddie" Mathews was an American Major League Baseball third baseman. He is regarded as one of the greatest third basemen ever to play the game.-Early life:...
, Joe Torre
Joe Torre
Joseph Paul Torre is a former American professional baseball player and manager who currently serves as Major League Baseball’s Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations. A nine-time All-Star, he played in Major League Baseball as a catcher, first baseman and a third baseman for the...
, Felipe Alou and Gene Oliver
Gene Oliver
Eugene George Oliver was an American catcher and first baseman in Major League Baseball. From through , Oliver played for the St. Louis Cardinals , Milwaukee & Atlanta Braves , Philadelphia Phillies , Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs...
, as the Braves set a National League record with six 20-home run hitters in one season. When the Braves moved to Jones' native Atlanta in 1966, he hit 23 homers despite a shoulder injury. In 1967, he was traded to Cincinnati.
In the 1968 MLB expansion draft, Jones was the second player selected by the Montreal Expos (the fourth pick overall), behind Manny Mota
Manny Mota
Manuel Rafael Mota Geronimo, more commonly known as Manny Mota was a Major League Baseball Outfielder for the San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates, Montreal Expos and most notably the Los Angeles Dodgers, best known for his pinch hitting abilities...
.
On April 8, 1969 at Shea Stadium
Shea Stadium
William A. Shea Municipal Stadium, usually shortened to Shea Stadium or just Shea , was a stadium in the New York City borough of Queens, in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park. It was the home baseball park of Major League Baseball's New York Mets from 1964 to 2008...
in Flushing, New York
Flushing, Queens
Flushing, founded in 1645, is a neighborhood in the north central part of the City of New York borough of Queens, east of Manhattan.Flushing was one of the first Dutch settlements on Long Island. Today, it is one of the largest and most diverse neighborhoods in New York City...
, playing the Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
, history was made. Jones, along with Don Hahn
Don Hahn (baseball)
Donald Antone Hahn, born November 16, 1948 in San Francisco, California, is a former Major League baseball player, an outfielder known primarily for his fielding ability. Hahn played for the Montreal Expos, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, and San Diego Padres.Hahn...
and Rusty Staub
Rusty Staub
Daniel Joseph "Rusty" Staub is an American former Major League Baseball right fielder, designated hitter, and first baseman. He enjoyed a 23-year baseball career with 5 different teams...
, took the outfield
Outfield
The outfield is a sporting term used in cricket and baseball to refer to the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield...
in the bottom of the first inning for the first-day Expos. The trio made up the Expos' first outfield
Outfield
The outfield is a sporting term used in cricket and baseball to refer to the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield...
in Montreal franchise history; Jones played left field for the Expos, Hahn
Don Hahn (baseball)
Donald Antone Hahn, born November 16, 1948 in San Francisco, California, is a former Major League baseball player, an outfielder known primarily for his fielding ability. Hahn played for the Montreal Expos, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, and San Diego Padres.Hahn...
was the first Expo ever to play center field and Staub
Rusty Staub
Daniel Joseph "Rusty" Staub is an American former Major League Baseball right fielder, designated hitter, and first baseman. He enjoyed a 23-year baseball career with 5 different teams...
to ever play right field.
Six days later, on April 14, 1969, Jones hit a three-run home run and two-run triple
Triple (baseball)
In baseball, a triple is the act of a batter safely reaching third base after hitting the ball, with neither the benefit of a fielder's misplay nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....
in the Expos' first home victory as a franchise, an 8-7 win over the St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
at Jarry Park
Jarry Park
Jarry Park is an urban park in the Villeray neighbourhood of Montreal. From 1969 to 1976, the former Jarry Park Stadium was the home of the Montreal Expos, Canada's first Major League Baseball team. It also hosted a mass by Pope John Paul II...
. The home run came with Staub and Don Bosch
Don Bosch
Donald John "Don" Bosch was a Major League Baseball player and minor league baseball all-star....
on base and was the very first to be hit in a Major League regular season game in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Jones finished that season with a career-high .270 batting average, 22 homers
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
and 79 runs batted in. So popular was Jones in Montreal that the left-field bleachers in Jarry Park
Jarry Park
Jarry Park is an urban park in the Villeray neighbourhood of Montreal. From 1969 to 1976, the former Jarry Park Stadium was the home of the Montreal Expos, Canada's first Major League Baseball team. It also hosted a mass by Pope John Paul II...
were nicknamed "Jonesville."
In an 11-year career, Jones was a .252 hitter with 133 home runs, 415 RBI, 485 runs, 132 double
Double (baseball)
In baseball, a double is the act of a batter striking the pitched ball and safely reaching second base without being called out by the umpire, without the benefit of a fielder's misplay or another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....
s, 31 triple
Triple (baseball)
In baseball, a triple is the act of a batter safely reaching third base after hitting the ball, with neither the benefit of a fielder's misplay nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....
s, and 65 stolen base
Stolen base
In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a baserunner successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is delivering the ball to home plate...
s in 1002 games.
Mack Jones died in Atlanta from complications with stomach cancer
Stomach cancer
Gastric cancer, commonly referred to as stomach cancer, can develop in any part of the stomach and may spread throughout the stomach and to other organs; particularly the esophagus, lungs, lymph nodes, and the liver...
. He was 65 years old.
A former Triple-A
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...
Syracuse Chiefs outfielder, Mack Jones was inducted into the Syracuse Baseball Wall of Fame in 2000. He had one of the best seasons ever by a Syracuse baseball player in 1964, when he batted .317 with 15 doubles, 18 triples, 39 home runs and 102 runs batted in. He holds modern-day single-season Syracuse records for runs (111), total bases (337), RBIs, triples and home runs, all set in 1964. Jones was part of a famed Syracuse Chiefs outfield that season that included future major-league stars Wille Horton and Jim Northrup.