trublue 939 Author Report Share Posted May 10, 2008 ajc.com > Sports > Braves Chipper's switch-hitting prowess no fluke Braves slugger nearing 400th career home run By CARROLL ROGERS The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Published on: 05/09/08 The idea was born before Chipper Jones was, when the "old block" was just a chip himself. Larry Wayne Jones Sr. was a kid in Baltimore when he fell in love with the switch-hitting Yankee Mickey Mantle. He saw the power Mantle could generate left-handed from the right field bleachers at Memorial Stadium. "He hit a line drive that went over our head like a rocket," Larry Jones said. Like Mutt Mantle taught his son, Larry taught his only son Chipper to switch-hit in the backyard in Pierson, Fla. Now, 15 years into his career, Jones is in Mantle territory as one of the best switch-hitters ever. He needs four home runs to reach 400 for his career. He'll be only the third switch-hitter to get there after Mantle (536) and Eddie Murray (504). "When I started switch hitting, no way in a million years would I have ever thought that I would be hitting 400 homers in the big leagues," Chipper Jones said. "I was thinking: steal 30 bases a year, slap the ball and hit .300 from both sides." Jones, a natural right-hander, became much more than a left-handed slap hitter, one-step closer to first base. The left side is his power side, with more opposite field pop. He hits a homer every 16 at-bats left-handed, every 22 at-bats right-handed. Jones could become the only switch-hitter with more than 300 home runs to hit .300 for his career. He's hitting .309 for his career. Mantle hit .298. "For Chipper to be from one-stoplight Pierson, Fla., mentioned in the same breath as Mickey Mantle and Eddie Murray is just beyond anything," said Larry Jones, who has a signed photo of Chipper and Mantle from a 1992 card show. "We're so fortunate as a family to experience what we've experienced." Larry Jones made sure batting left-handed in the backyard was fun. Chipper would imitate the Dodgers lineup and when Reggie Smith came up - or Mike Scoscia or Kenny Landreaux - he batted left-handed. "I loved working on it because it was a challenge," Jones said. He hit one over the hay barn to the family fernery for the first time left-handed at age 7 or 8. He homered left-handed in a game at 11 or 12. "Once you do it once, you're hooked," Jones said. He started switch-hitting regularly at 13, and it was his idea. His dad had one rule: he couldn't go back and hit right-handed when things got tough. Chipper made that commitment, even if his coaches didn't. In the finals of a Babe Ruth tournament, a coach asked if Chipper could hit right-handed. "I said no," Larry Jones said. "If he does it once, then in crunch time, he'll want to switch back." As a pro, the idea struck Jones once. He was a month into rookie ball, after the Braves drafted him No. 1 overall. Coming off a broken hand and struggling to adjust to wood bats, he heard about it from buddies with the Pirates and Expos, who also trained in Bradenton, Fla. Jones asked his manager if he could hit right-handed to get through the season. His manager obliged. Several days later, after Braves executives Bobby Cox and Paul Snyder came to town, that manager was out of a job. "I realized that the fact that I was a switch-hitter was what made me so attractive in the draft and to give it up a month into my pro career was really stupid," Jones said. What he's learned is to maintain it, "it's twice the work" as his father says. He has two swings, with two sets of needs, and often two different bats. Left-handed he uses a bat one ounce heavier to help generate power. "I've got a lot more moving parts in my (left-handed) swing," Jones said. "Right-handed things are a lot more simple. It's basically just see it, hit it." He's done that both ways this year. Entering the weekend, he was hitting .396 right-handed and .434 left-handed while leading the majors with a .419 average overall. At age 36, 500 homers is in range, and 3,000 hits isn't all the way out (2,169 and counting). What will make his final numbers all the more impressive is the "." next to his name, denoting switch-hitter. "When you think of Mickey you think of the home runs," Jones said. "When you think of Eddie Murray you think of the longevity, the runs produced and the 500 homers. I want to be the guy who hit a bunch of homers, drove in a lot of runs, scored a lot of runs, hit for a high average, had a high on-base percentage. I want to be the all-around switch-hitter." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBlueAlum 12 Report Share Posted May 12, 2008 Well, I made it back from my trip down to ATL. We had the all you can eat seats on Wednesday night and they were well worth the money. They aren’t the best seats, but the food and beverage more than made up for it. It is just a fun environment all around. We went to the Thursday game as well. It was a 1pm game and was a pretty sparse crowd. We got the $6 upper deck seats and then moved down after the 1st half inning and ended up field level about 20 rows from the dugout. We could have been closer but we just wanted to be under the terrace level for the shade (still recovering from the all you can drink portion of the night before). We had a great time. Especially since the Braves swept and finished up their 6 game winning streak. I would like to add that we stayed at the Comfort Inn at Turner field, which is only a 2 minute walk to the main gate. The room ended up being about $160 for the night, but in my opinion it was well worth it. I had heard horror stories about that section of town. While it is a little rough, I had seen far worse parts around Spring St. and Peachtree St. That price was a little much for what you get, but it was clean and had free breakfast, and also free parking, so you save $20-25 for parking at the field. All in all, I would recommend it for what we used it for, but then again we were three guys just out of college so our expectations’ aren’t much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vthokies4life 10 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 Ugh... how are all of my fellow Braves fans holding up? I know I'm struggling with all these Teixeira rumors, injuries, and blown leads the past couple of games. Plus, we've just sucked the past couple of weeks. I'm interested to see how we finish the season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vthokies4life 10 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 One more thing... http://www.thefightins.com/meechone/will-ohman-does-an-impression-of-will-farrell-doing-harry-carey/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluefield_Rules 46 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 [ QUOTE ] Ugh... how are all of my fellow Braves fans holding up? I know I'm struggling with all these Teixeira rumors, injuries, and blown leads the past couple of games. Plus, we've just sucked the past couple of weeks. I'm interested to see how we finish the season. [/ QUOTE ] Honestly, what did you expect? I said before the season started that those people picking the Braves to make the playoffs and even the World Series were out of their minds. Atlanta has become nothing more than a minor league team for the clubs with big budgets. They grow the young talent and when the talent reaches it potential they trade it away because they cannot afford to keep it. Baseball needs a salary cap in the worst kind of way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trublue 939 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 It just became a domino effect....Smoltz, Glavine, Diaz, now Huddy probably for the year. When they lost those 2 recent games with HUGE leads....(then Chipper and Huddy going on the DL)....that sealed the deal for Tex to leave town. (He is building a home here (he's a GT guy) and his wife is from the ATL area.) Blfd. Rules is right.....they were not going to be able to afford Tex after the season and I'm beginning to agree that MLB does need a salary cap. I'll just "cry in my sweet tea" and remember "the way it used to be." I'll continue to watch them.....terrible, struggling, "looking like the bad news bears".....they'll still be part of the TV viewing in this household w/a few disclaimers thrown in every now and then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBlueAlum 12 Report Share Posted July 30, 2008 Braves deal Teixeira for two players ATLANTA -- The Braves have traded Mark Teixeira to the Angels in exchange for Casey Kotchman and Minor League pitcher Stephen Marek, a Braves official has confirmed. Teixeira, who has hit .283 with 20 homers this year, will provide the Angels with the power they’re seeking as they attempt to make a run toward the World Series. Kotchman, who has hit .287 with 12 homers this season, provides the Braves with the power-hitting first baseman they were seeking as compensation for Teixeira. Marek is a 25-year-old right-hander who has gone 2-6 with a 3.66 ERA in 34 relief appearances for Double-A Arkansas this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBlueAlum 12 Report Share Posted July 30, 2008 [ QUOTE ] One more thing... http://www.thefightins.com/meechone/will-ohman-does-an-impression-of-will-farrell-doing-harry-carey/ [/ QUOTE ] That was pretty funny. The last game I went to in Atlanta Ohman was fielding fly balls in BP. He was standing at the fence shootin' the bull with a few fans, and he said some pretty funny things then, and he seemed like a nice guy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GHS06 10 Report Share Posted July 30, 2008 [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] Ugh... how are all of my fellow Braves fans holding up? I know I'm struggling with all these Teixeira rumors, injuries, and blown leads the past couple of games. Plus, we've just sucked the past couple of weeks. I'm interested to see how we finish the season. [/ QUOTE ] Honestly, what did you expect? I said before the season started that those people picking the Braves to make the playoffs and even the World Series were out of their minds. Atlanta has become nothing more than a minor league team for the clubs with big budgets. They grow the young talent and when the talent reaches it potential they trade it away because they cannot afford to keep it. Baseball needs a salary cap in the worst kind of way. [/ QUOTE ] The Braves are top ten in payroll. The organization is known for trading away talent at the right time. Could you give some examples of players the Braves developed but couldn't afford? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluefieldRocks 14 Report Share Posted July 30, 2008 Traded Tex to Anahiem for Krotchman (sp). Who the F*ck is Krotchman? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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