Doug Jones (baseball)


Douglas Reid Jones is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher. During a 16-year career, he played for the Milwaukee Brewers, Cleveland Indians, Baltimore Orioles, and Oakland Athletics, all of the American League, and the Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, and Chicago Cubs of the National League.

Career

Jones was selected by the Brewers in the third round of the 1978 MLB draft, and spent seven years in their minor league system. His only major league experience was four games in 1982. He was released after the 1984 season, and he signed with the Indians. He became the Indians' full-time closer by 1988, breaking the Indians' record for saves in a season with 37. He held the Indians' all-time record for saves with 129 until Bob Wickman broke it on May 7, 2006.
Jones threw an immaculate inning during a save on September 23, 1997 by striking out Johnny Damon, Scott Cooper and Rod Myers of the Kansas City Royals.
Jones announced his retirement on December 7, 2000. His 303 career save ranked 12th in major league history upon his retirement, and his 846 career appearances ranked 21st. A changeup specialist, he was known for keeping hitters off balance by throwing extremely slow pitches. He threw a two-seam fastball that topped out in the low-to-mid 80s and a knuckle curve on occasion.
He was elected to the American League All-Star team three times and to the National League All-Star team twice. He was the oldest player in the majors in 2000 at the age of 43.
On January 22, 2015, he was named pitching coach for the Boise Hawks, a minor league affiliate of the Colorado Rockies.