Cleon Joseph Jones (born June 24, 1942) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

player. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

as a

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, 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. In the numbering system ...

. Jones played most of his career for the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

and in 1969 caught the final out of the "Miracle Mets"

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

Championship over the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

Baseball career

Minor leagues

Jones played football and

at Mobile County Training School in

Mobile, Alabama Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. After a successful vote to annex areas west of the city limits in July 2023, Mobil ...

, and

Alabama A&M University Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University (Alabama A&M or AAMU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Normal, Huntsville, Alabama. Founded in 1875, it took its present name in 1969. It was one of about 180 " normal s ...

. With the Bulldogs, Jones scored 26

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

in nine games. He also played baseball for the Grambling State Tigers of Grambling State University. Jones signed with the

as an amateur

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

in 1962. After batting over .300 for both the

Carolina League The Carolina League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated along the Atlantic Coast of the United States since 1945. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 unti ...

Raleigh Mets and New York–Penn League Auburn Mets in 1963, Jones received a September call-up to the major league club without having played double or triple A ball. He got two hits in 15 at-bats for a .133

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

during his stint with the New York Mets. After spending all of 1964 with the triple A

Buffalo Bisons The Buffalo Bisons (known colloquially as the Herd) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. Located in Buffalo, New York, the team plays their home games at Sahlen Fiel ...

, Jones made the Mets out of

Spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

and was in the 1965 season opener against the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

. Jones was demoted to Buffalo on May 2 with a .156

. He again received a call up to New York that September, and hit his first major league

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

on September 22 against the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

. He finished the season with a .149 batting average.

New York Mets

Jones was awarded the starting

center fielder A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the ...

job in 1966, and batted .275 with eight home runs, 57

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...

(RBIs) and 16 stolen bases to finish tied for fourth in

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

Rookie of the Year balloting. His batting average dipped to .246 in 1967, and he ended up sharing playing time in center field with Larry Stahl. Following the season, the Mets acquired Jones' childhood friend Tommie Agee from the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

. Jones was moved to left field with the former Gold Glove-winner Agee playing center field. Jones began the 1968 season platooning with Art Shamsky in left. He was batting .205 on May 18, when he went three for four with a home run, two RBIs and two

runs scored In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted bal ...

to lift the Mets to a 5–2 victory over the

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...

. From there, Jones began to hit; perhaps the finest game of his career occurred on July 16 at Connie Mack Stadium in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, when Jones went four for six with three RBIs and a run scored, and played all three outfield positions. He ended the season with a .297 batting average, which was sixth best in the National League.

Amazin' Mets

Jones was batting .341 with ten home runs and 56 RBIs in the first half of 1969 earning the starting left field job for the

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that showcases the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or division, bu ...

. He went two for four with two runs scored in the NL's 9–3 victory. He hit a home run in the first game after the break, and emerged as the hitting star of the surprising Mets, with a team-leading batting average of .340. The Amazins found themselves in second place, five games back of the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

in the newly aligned

National League East The National League East is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. Along with the American League Central, it is one of two divisions to have every member win at least one World Series title. After having internal, informal divisions for ...

when the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

came to

Shea Stadium William A. Shea Municipal Stadium ( ), typically shortened to Shea Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City.double header.

July 30, 1969

After losing the first game 16–3, the Mets were down 7–0 in the third inning of the second game when Johnny Edwards hit a

double Double, The Double or Dubble may refer to: Mathematics and computing * Multiplication by 2 * Double precision, a floating-point representation of numbers that is typically 64 bits in length * A double number of the form x+yj, where j^2=+1 * A ...

to Jones in left field to make the score 8–0. Mets manager

Gil Hodges Gilbert Raymond Hodges (born Hodge; April 4, 1924 – April 2, 1972) was an American first baseman and manager (baseball), manager in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played most of his 18-year career for the History of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Broo ...

emerged from the dugout, walked past

Nolan Ryan Lynn Nolan Ryan Jr. (born January 31, 1947), nicknamed "the Ryan Express", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sports executive. Over a record 27-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB), Ryan pitched for the New Yo ...

on the mound, and walked all the way out to left field. A few minutes later, Hodges walked back to the dugout, with Jones a few paces behind him, and replaced Jones in left with Ron Swoboda. Newspapers at the time said Jones suffered a leg injury and he was not in the Mets lineup for several games after July 30. Other reporters opined that Jones was removed for failure to hustle, and still others suggested the effect of Hodges’s decision sent a message to the whole team: that he would not tolerate a lack of effort on his team, not even from its star player. On August 22, 2009, following pre-game ceremonies honoring the 40th anniversary of the "Miracle Mets", Jones discussed the incident during

SportsNet New York SportsNet New York (SNY) is an American regional sports network owned by Sterling Entertainment Enterprises, LLC, itself a joint venture between Fred Wilpon's Sterling Equities (which owns a controlling 65% interest), Charter Communications th ...

's telecast of that night's game. Jones said Hodges asked him why he did not look good going after a fly ball on the previous play. According to Jones, he pointed down to the water-filled turf. Jones said he reminded Hodges of his leg injury, and that the conditions on the field made it difficult for him to play his best. Jones said Hodges agreed, that he shouldn’t be playing, and they walked off the field together. Jones explained that Hodges was his favorite manager, and that he would never publicly embarrass a player. According to Jones, neither party ever revealed the contents of the conversation. Jones believes that the fear instilled in other players by the incident was the turning point in the season.

World Series champions

The Mets won 38 of their last 50 games, and finished the 1969 season with 100 wins —- eight games better than the second place Cubs. Jones ended the season with a .340 batting average, which was third in the league behind

Pete Rose Peter Edward Rose Sr. (April 14, 1941 – September 30, 2024), nicknamed "Charlie Hustle", was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1986, most prominently as a member of ...

and

Roberto Clemente Roberto Enrique Clemente Walker (; August 18, 1934 – December 31, 1972) was a Puerto Rican professional baseball player who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, primarily as a right fielder. On December ...

, and was second on the team in home runs, RBIs and runs scored, behind Tommie Agee in all three categories. Jones batted a stellar .429 in the Mets' three game sweep of the Atlanta Braves in the 1969 National League Championship Series. In game two of the series, Jones went three for five with a home run, two runs scored and three RBIs in the Mets' 11–6 victory. The Mets were heavy underdogs in the 1969 World Series but took a 3–1 series lead. The Orioles were ahead 3–0 in game five when Jones led off the sixth inning. Dave McNally struck Jones in the foot with a pitch, however,

home plate A baseball field, also called a ball field or baseball diamond, is the field upon which the game of baseball is played. The term can also be used as a metonym for a baseball park. The term sandlot is sometimes used, although this usually refers ...

umpire An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The term derives from the Old French , , and , : (as evidenced in cricke ...

Lou DiMuro Louis John DiMuro (April 24, 1931 – June 7, 1982) was an American umpire (baseball), umpire in Major League Baseball who worked in the American League from 1963 in baseball, 1963 until his death. Career DiMuro was born in Brooklyn, New York, a ...

ruled that the ball missed Jones. Gil Hodges emerged from the dugout to argue, and showed DiMuro the shoe-polish smudged ball. DiMuro reversed his call, and awarded Jones first base. The following batter,

Donn Clendenon Donn Alvin Clendenon (July 15, 1935 – September 17, 2005) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman from to . He is most notable for his performance during the 1969 World Series when he ...

, hit a two-run home run to pull the Mets within a run of Baltimore. Following an Al Weis solo home run in the seventh to tie the game, Jones led off the eighth inning with a double off the wall that missed being a home run by about , and scored on Ron Swoboda's double two batters later. With the Mets leading 5–3 in the ninth inning, Orioles

second baseman In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the Infielder, infield, between Baseball field#Second base, second and Baseball field#First base, first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and f ...

Davey Johnson hit a 2-1 fastball which Jones caught near the warning track to win the World Series.

1973 World Series

Early in the 1970 season, Jones suffered through the worst slump in his career that saw his batting average reach .167 on May 26. His average improved to .251 by the time he began a then-club record 23-game hitting streak on August 25. For the season, he wound up hitting .277. In 1971, Jones was again a .300 hitter, as he was seventh in the league with a .319 batting average. In 1972, Jones platooned with John Milner in left field. He played twenty games at

first base A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

, but not very well, and endured one of his worst seasons. The following season, Milner was shifted to first with Jones once again in left field. In the 1973 season opener, Jones had his first career two home run game against the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

. He had his second on September 19, against the

in the first game of a crucial three game series at Shea for first place. The following day, Jones started one of the most memorable plays in Mets history, what has become known as the "Ball on the Wall Play". In the top of the 13th inning, with

Richie Zisk Richard Walter Zisk (born February 6, 1949) is an American former professional baseball player, coach and scout. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as an outfielder and designated hitter for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago White Sox, Texa ...

on first, Dave Augustine hit what appeared to be a home run over the left field wall. Jones turned to play the ball off the wall and the ball hit the top of the wall and went right into Jones' glove on the fly. He turned and threw to relay man Wayne Garrett, who threw home to

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

Ron Hodges to nail Zisk at the plate. Following this miracle play, the Mets won the game in the bottom half of the inning to move within half a game of the first place Pirates. Jones caught fire at the end of the season, hitting six homers in the last ten games of the season to lead the Mets to the pennant. The Mets won the Eastern Division title on the last day of the season with a record of 82-79 but went on to demonstrate that it was no fluke when they upset the "Big Red Machine" in the

National League Championship Series The National League Championship Series (NLCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. It is contested by the winners of the two Natio ...

. Jones went three for five with two RBIs and a run scored in the series clincher. The Mets lost in seven games to the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

in the

1973 World Series The 1973 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1973 Major League Baseball season, 1973 season. The 70th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American Leag ...

. For his part, Jones batted .286 with a home run in Game 2, and scored one of the four runs the Mets scored in the 12th inning of their Game 2 victory.

Incident in 1975

Jones suffered a knee injury, and was out on extended spring training when the 1975 season started. At 5:00 a.m. on May 4, Jones was arrested and charged with indecent exposure in

St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the List of municipalities in Florida, fifth-most populous city in Florida and the most populous city in the sta ...

. Police officers found him asleep in a station wagon with 21-year-old Sharon Ann Sabol, who was charged with possession of marijuana. Jones said he did not know Sabol, but was giving her a ride home in a friend's borrowed station wagon, which ran out of gas, and that he had fallen asleep fully clothed, except for his shoes, waiting for help. The charges were later dropped, but chairman of the New York Mets M. Donald Grant fined Jones $2,000, four times as much as a Met had ever been assessed before, and forced him to publicly apologize during a press conference held in New York. Jones apologized with his wife Angela, his high school sweetheart, by his side. He and Angela have been married for more than 50 years.

Retirement

Jones rejoined the Mets on May 27. He was batting .240, mostly as a pinch hitter, when he was released by the Mets on July 18 after an altercation with manager

Yogi Berra Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra (born Lorenzo Pietro Berra; May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher who later took on the roles of Manager (baseball), manager and Coach (baseball), coach. He played 19 seas ...

. He was acquired by the

in 1976. He was released 13 games into the season with a .200 batting average, and retired afterwards.

Jones earned a reputation as an outfielder with one of the strongest arms in the National League. For his career, he had 64 outfield assists, including ten in 1966 and 1970. In 1981, Jones was hired by Frank Cashen of the New York Mets to play a key role as a minor-league hitting coach. Jones helped shape the careers of future Met stars, including Kevin Mitchell, who figured prominently in the 1986 World Series Championship.

Honors

Jones was inducted into the

New York Mets Hall of Fame The New York Mets Hall of Fame was created in order to recognize the careers of former New York Mets players, managers, broadcasters and executives. There are presently 30 members. Originally located in the Diamond Club at Shea Stadium, the ind ...

in 1991. His .340 average in 1969 remained a team record until John Olerud batted .354 in 1998. Jones remains among the team's all-time leaders in games played, at bats, and hits. Jones is a member of the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, and a member of the Mobile Sports Hall of Fame. In June 2012, Jones was selected as the Mets' "All-Time Leftfielder" by a panel of sports writers and broadcasters, an honor which he said "means a lot to me." On November 14, 2021, Jones was inducted into the New York State Baseball Hall of Fame during a ceremonial dinner in Troy, New York. His wife of 57 years, Angela, was by his side.

After baseball

He appeared as himself in a 1999 episode of ''

Everybody Loves Raymond ''Everybody Loves Raymond'' is an American television sitcom created by Philip Rosenthal that aired on CBS from September 13, 1996, to May 16, 2005, with a total of 210 episodes spanning nine seasons. It was produced by Where's Lunch and Wor ...

'' along with several other members of the 1969 Mets. The hip-hop duo

The High & Mighty The High & Mighty is an American hip hop duo from Philadelphia, composed of rapper Mr. Eon ("The High", b. Erik Meltzer in February 16, 1972) and producer DJ Mighty Mi ("The Mighty", b. Milo Berger in September 1, 1972). Career Their comme ...

mention Jones in their song entitled "B-Boy Document '99." ''

Men in Black 3 ''Men in Black 3'' (stylized as ''MIB³'') is a 2012 American science fiction action comedy film based on the comic book series, in turn based on the conspiracy theory. It is the third installment in the ''Men in Black'' film series. Direct ...

'' features a scene that re-enacts a few moments of the 1969 World Series, which mentions Jones, and depicts his catching of the fly ball off the bat of Davey Johnson that ended the Fall Classic. Jones resides in his native Mobile where he and his wife, Angela, refurbish homes of senior residents of the Africatown section of Mobile. Jones' autobiography ''Coming Home: My Amazin' Life with the New York Mets'' was published in August 2022.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Cleon 1942 births Living people African-American baseball players Alabama A&M Bulldogs baseball players Alabama A&M Bulldogs football players Auburn Mets players Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Chicago White Sox players Major League Baseball left fielders Major League Baseball controversies National League All-Stars New York Mets players Raleigh Mets players Baseball players from Mobile, Alabama 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen Grambling State Tigers baseball players