Nearly eight weeks after undergoing reconstructive surgery on his left knee, third baseman Chipper Jones told Barry M. Bloom of MLB.com that his recovery is going well. While the veteran's knee won't heal in time for him to play in the National League Championship Series or the World Series, Jones sounds confident that he'll make it back at some point in 2011.
"I don't want the last memory of me to be laying out behind third base. On top of that, I was playing really well and I was swinging the bat really well. I was healthy and I was running the bases good. My frame of mind was really focused. I just want to keep going," said the 38-year-old.
Jones has two years remaining on his deal and is guaranteed to make $13MM for each of those seasons. The Braves hold a $7MM club option for 2013 but that option will automatically vest if the veteran plays in 123 games in 2012 or averages 127 games over the next two years. The six-time All-Star played in 143 games in 2009 but appeared in just 95 this past season.
Good, we need Chipper and his OBP in the lineup. I don’t dont know what I would do without both Chipper and Bobby next year.
Yep, we sure could have used him (and Prado) in the playoffs…
instead of Infante and Glaus or Conrad…
We could have had Prado and Chip!
that would have been great
then we would have had Infante on the bench instead of have Hernandez as our backup…
We would be playing the Phils in the NLCS if Chip and Prado were healthy! Hell, we might have even had a shot at winning a couple games against em!
Wouldn’t it be kind of cool if Chipper just took over as manager? But I agree, it would suck if that was how his playing career ended.
When was the last player manager? Was it Pete Rose?
I’m betting it was him. (Get it…betting)
odds are it won’t happen
bbbbrrrruumm (drumroll)
next …
I hope Wagner does the same personally
Ladies and Gentlemen I introduce the Bret Favre of the MLB, MR. CHIPPER JONES!!!!!
Yeah…not even close. When did Chipper ever say he was definitely going to retire?
no, if this was a Favre situation, he wouldn’t announce he was coming back until 2 weeks into spring training.
Or for that matter, actually retire several times only to keep returning. Simplistic analysis with no basis in fact.
He never said anything even remotely close to “I’m retiring” it was always “we’ll talk about it after the season”. Way to screw up your facts.
Exactly. He said he was considering it but wouldn’t talk about it anymore until after the season so there weren’t any distractions…. and he didn’t talk about it.
Too bad there aren’t any ‘UnLike’ buttons
Probs more like dislike
There’s a difference. Chipper Jones doesen’t fumble like 10 times in one half of a football game.
He said he was coming back next year immediately after the injury occurred.
That’s OK as long as he doesn’t text pictures!
Also to be Favre, Chipper would have to send pics of his dong to some hot chick within the Braves organization
Actually, I think it’d have to be someone with the Mets.
Not only did Chipper never say for certain he was retiring, but he even publicly stated, “you can make absurd amounts of money [as a ballplayer]” (in regards to why it would be hard to retire).
u are so dumb chipper hasnt retired or unretired once in his career so thats just an awful comparison
I hope he can hit well, he’s probably gonna look worse than ever at 3rd, but I’m glad he’s coming back
I think the Conrad/Infante dynamic duo at 3B takes any and all pressure off Chipper’s D. Good Lord.
Actually he was pretty decent in the field this year and even posted a positive UZR I believe. He knows where he is going with the ball and still has the correct reactions and instincts needed to play third even if his range isn’t what it used to be.
Oh really? I didn’t know that, that’s cool. I’m pretty worried about the knee though, that seems pretty tough for players to come back from, though it seems rather rare in baseball, I know it happened to Milton Bradley and he came back and had a great year with the Rangers, but Bradley was only 30 and Chipper is gonna be 39
Dammit…at least Cox is gone…
Hahaha awesome name.
i was looking up his stats and didn’t really see any major milestones he is close to. I suppose if he played till he was 42/43 he could get 3000 hits. he is 7 doubles shy of 500 and 9 rbi’s shy of 1500.
I don’t think that has any bearing on him coming back. He just wants to go out on his own terms imo.
Chipper has $33,000,000 reasons to hang around.
Forgive my blasphemy in this, after his final hour… does anyone else think Bobby Cox was one of the most overrated managers? He had a dynasty quality team for many years and yet was only able to win the big title once, despite being a heavy favorite many times.
He had a dynasty quality pitching staff, not really a dynasty quality offense. You can use the modern Phillies as a comparison.
All the same, the one thing that makes me rage as a lifelong Braves fan is the lack of fundamentals. They don’t run the bases well, they struggle with moving runners over, they can’t bunt…they always seemed to be playing for the 3-run homer.
The big positive out of Cox is that he got a lot out of people with marginal talent — such as the career .240 hitters that carried the Braves to the postseason this year.
The talent on offense this year did not match up well with how Bobby likes to play but even then we were near the top in runs scored even though we left guys on base all the time.
Bobby gets the most out of his players but his gameplan didn’t always match his players. I for one will miss him dearly but I am excited to see what the next manager can bring (comon home Freddy!)
well he did have Andruw Jones in his good years and Chipper anchoring an offense for quite some time.
Since I’m assuming you’re a Braves fan… are you agreeing or disagreeing with Cox being overrated?
Bobby Cox was the greatest regular-season manager
but also, as much as I hate to say it, Greg Maddux was the an all-time great regular-season pitcher. but his crafty, brilliant but soft stuff lost its edge when things got whiddled down to the best teams with the best hitters. Glavine, too. Smoltz was the real stud of that staff.
also Bobby and the Braves stuff had no luck with closers.
Stiil, its time to give the old dog a salute
i meant Braves STAFF, but stuff kinda works, too
Reardon had faded below his Expos/Twinkie days, Mark Wohlers could’ve been a Dodger: a late-inning home-run waiting to happen (see Broxton, Niedenfeur)
Now Billy Wagner: the tiny terror regained his short-arm-missile mojo for a last hurrah only to go down with the tragic career-ender.
BW — the greatest No. 13 ever?
Greg Maddux had an 11-13 record in the postseason but had a 3.27 ERA. It’s not his fault that the Braves couldn’t score and he lost a bunch of 1-0, 2-1, and 3-2 games. Also, although he was 2-3 in the World Series, he had an ERA of 2.09. That is absolutely unbelievable
This is one of the worst posts of alltime. Greg maddux may have been 11-13 in the postseason, but he had an ERA of 3.27. It’s not his fault that the Braves couldn’t score runs and he lost 1-0, 2-1, and 3-2 games. He was only 2-3 in the World Series, but his incredible 2.09 proves that he should have fared much better
An offense of Andruw Jones(in his good years), Chipper Jones, Fred McGriff, Javy Lopez, and David Justice wasn’t all that bad.
He also helped assemble that dynasty quality team as the GM before becoming the manager. That should count for something.
Three HOF pitchers and 1 possible HOF 3rd baseman have a tendency to make you look brilliant. The fact that he’s kept the same job hasn’t hurt.
I think the braves should have won more than 1 World Series during that 14 year run but con you honestly believe that it was the fault of the manager? I would like to give my opinion and mind you it is only an opinion of why the braves did not win more world titles. The braves had one of the greatest pitching staffs ever assembled for a long 162 game season but the braves had 1 power pitcher (Smoltz) and i think in a short series (5-7 games) power pitchers have a distinct advantage. Please dont jump on me too bad for this observation I have not crunched the numbers on power staffs vs. control staffs in the playoff competition………..thats just 1 reason I think the braves dont have more WS titles. In my opinion the Philles have a great chance to win it all……Halliday…Oswalt……Hamels are all to a certain extent power pitchers but in the same sense the Giants have the same thing so who knows. I would love to know what others think of this theory of mine.
I’m glad he’s coming back. After clearing the air about his “retirement” midseason, he started playing like Chipper again. We’re going to need that next year.
fill in the blanks for me please. 2011 BRAVES: LINEUP: Mccann C, Chipper 3b, ss_______ , Prado 2b, Freeman 1b, lf________, cf___________, rf Heyward. SP: Hudson, Dlowe, Hanson, Jurrjens other SP Kawakami, Minor, Beachy, Teheran. BULLPEN: c Kimbrell, su Moylan, Venters, r Martinez, l Dunn, Oflaherty. BENCH: Ross, Infante, _____, _____
Gonzalez at SS is pretty close to a lock. I’d say Hinske and Diaz (at a lower price) come back, and we probably bring back Conrad too. LF and CF is where Wren is going to have to work his magic and it’s going to be interesting to see what he does. I’m going to say Burrell and a trade.
Considering McLouth’s .263/.358/.509/.867 batting line since coming back from the minors and guaranteed contract for 2011 he will likely be in CF or LF depending on what bat Wren finds via trade for the outfield which is anybody’s guess. Gonzalez will be back at SS with his option picked up, and Freeman will be at 1B like you said.
The rotation will be Hudson, Hanson, Lowe, Jurrjens, Minor with Beachy in AAA, Teheran in AA, and Kawakami gone one way or the other. Jurrjens could also conciveably be traded for said outfield bat and a veteran like Vazquez brought in (Beachy is good be doesn’t have the innings yet to go a full season as a fifth starter). Kimbril will likely close with Venters and a veteran FA used as primary setup men with Moylan, Dunn, and O’Flaherty getting the bulk of the middle relief innings.
The bench should be Ross at catcher, Infante at super-utility, Conrad as a pinch hitter, Diaz as the fourth outfielder and lefty killer pinch hitter and likely Hicks or Hernandez as defensive backup infielder.
The only thing really interesting I see unfolding about this offseason is who Wren will bring in this offseason to play LF or CF and if he will trade Jurrjens to do it.
a trade of jurrjens,vizcaino,mycal jones and another piece for colby rasmus!!!!
I wouldn’t trade Jones, only because the Braves desperately need quality position players.
I agree with this completely.Some other scenarios I could see playing out:Braves go hard after FA Cody Ross to play LF/CF as he is probably about as good of a FA as we would pay for.ORPlay Infante or Prado in LF until Kris Medlen comes back. If he can make his return before the trade deadline next summer, then I think that’s when the Braves could trade a starting pitcher for a RH OF bat. That may be too late though.I like the idea of bringing Javy Vazquez back for what should be a very reasonable price and trading a starting pitcher for a RH OF bat. I also like the idea of simply bringing Javy Vazquez back to be the 5th starter instead of Minor/Beachy.If I had to guess though, I would say the starting lineup for the Braves next year would look something like this:Prado- 4Heyward- 9Chipper- 5McCann- 2Cody Ross- 8Freeman- 3Gonzalez- 6McLouth- 7
Did Cody Ross like playing for Fredi Gonzalez in Florida enough to choose the Braves? I’d think so.. and hope so!
It’d be a huge mistake to let Infante start next year too, his performance isn’t sustainable
I HIGHLY doubt Frank Wren will have to resort to that scenario, but it’s still an option.. I don’t want to see that either
I still think the Cody Ross/Fredi Gonzalez reunion should be high on the list of options for the Braves, and I hope that’s the option that Frank Wren goes for.
Why Cody Ross? What does he bring to the braves that we dont have already? right handed bat? He has very mediocre power and strikes out a ton…..not base stealer….so what is it that makes him so appealing? Maybe I’m missing something…..someone please clue me in!
Agreed. Infante is a great utility man. It makes the team better to have a guy like that off the bench.
I wouldn’t mind Cody Ross but I would love it if Frank were to spend some money on Carl Crawford or Jayson Werth or make a legit trade for someone like Colby Rasmus or Jacoby Ellsbury. I wish we could bring back AJ but I’m just not sure he’s got it anymore. I wonder when we will see the first idiotic mention of Manny as a possibility?
The team desperately needs a middle of the order bat. DLee will be gone. Chipper will be in and out of the lineup, and a year older. Heyward and Freeman are not ready to carry the team offensively. There’s no reason that McCann can’t bounce back a bit next year, be he really has no business batting cleanup. If the Braves truly want to contend for a World Series title and not just a playoff berth they’ll have to set their sights a little higher than Cody Ross.
Chipper a HOFer…? I don’t know I am asking at this point what do you guys think?
Chipper to rotate between 1b and 3b, next year and fill in with Infante.
I really see the Braves making a big push for Prince Fielder with all their prospects but on his days off letting Chipper take some reps at 1b…thoughts?
Nah, 1st base is gonna be all Freddie Freeman next year. He and his buddy and roommate Heyward are stars in the making.
And yes, Chipper is a first-ballot hall of famer.
There are so many free agent first basemen on the market this year, I would never sell the farm for a fat turd like Fielder.
Chipper is our 3B, Freeman is our 1B. That is set in stone and may as well be the gospel. And yes, Chipper is absolutely a HOF’er.
Freddie Freeman
1.) Chipper is a first-ballot, sure fire hall of famer. You will see the Rad Sox trade for Alex Rodriguez and take on all of his salary before you see him not voted in ever.
2.) I would never spend my farm on Fielder. That guy isn’t going to watch his weight, is gonna be stubborn about it, and is probably only gonna have around 2 good years left before he ends up like Cecil.
Chipper is a first ballot HOFer……If not they should close the Hall down…..When you look at his career as a whole he is one of the top 2 or 3 switch hitters of all time. While Chipper did not win a gold glove he was not a liability at 3B and 2 or 3 years ago when David Wright won a gold glove, Chipper should have won it.
I cant see the braves going after Fielder for 2 reasons 1…Freddie freeman and 2. he bats left handed. Freeman is the first baseman for 2011 and if he doesnt pan out as well as we thought then something will have to be done….but its his job to lose.
As for the outfield I would love for someone to tell me if the Rasmus talk that has been going around is just talk or are the braves really pursuing that trade? Do you think Rasmus is the real deal?
I really doubt the Braves are going to add any more LH bats if they believe Freeman is their first baseman next year and that McLouth will be in LF/CF. The Braves really have to go after a RH OF bat.. and I GUARANTEE they won’t be in on the bidding for Jason Werth. That’s why I am predicting the addition of Cody Ross. We all know it’s 99% certain that Fredi Gonzalez is the next manager. Cody Ross played for him in Florida. The Braves have always been interested in Cody Ross and now that he’s a FA, I’m betting the Braves will try to go hard after him to add a quality RH OF bat. Doesn’t it just make sense?
It would be great if the Braves can get his 22 HR, 80 RBI production AND clutch hitting(well he’s always been clutch on the Marlins)that he had prior to this season.
I think Lowe’s value is about as high as it’s every going to be right now. I love Lowe, but I’m also a big fan of “selling high”. If we could trade Lowe and sign Brandon Webb then we would come out ahead both in years and money (Webb @ $10 millionish for ’11, Medlin for $500k in ’12). Lowe is a steady workhorse but Webb has way more upside (and, as typically follows, downside). I wouldn’t mind Podsednik in LF. I like the Cody Ross call from above also
Carl Crawford anyone??
i wouldn’t mind carl crawford who cares if he’s another lf bat he plays great d and a leadoff hitter that we need. and he still hasn’t reach his prime i believe. maybe we can trade lowe along with one of our stud young pitching prospects to an american league team for a power cf.