The Los Angeles Dodgers lost a bit of organizational depth at the start of July as Jahmai Jones opted out of his Minor League contract and elected free agency.
Jones wasn’t without a team for long as he signed with the Milwaukee Brewers and was added onto their active roster on Monday.
Jones previously signed a Minor League deal with the Dodgers nearly one year ago on July 23, 2022, but did not appear in a game with the organization until this season. He was previously a member of the Baltimore Orioles organization before they released him prior to his signing in L.A.
Once a top prospect of the Los Angeles Angels after being selected in the second round of the 2015 MLB Draft, Jones was never able to find his footing at the Major League level. He appeared in three games during the 2020 season and hit .429/.429/.429 (3-for-7) in his brief stint.
He was then sent to the Orioles in exchange for Alex Cobb during the 2021 trade deadline and he ended up appearing in 26 games for Baltimore. During that time, he hit just .149/.208/.194 with three doubles, five runs scored, three RBI and one stolen base while posting a -1.0 WAR.
That was the last time Jones appeared at the Major League level and he struggled in 2022 with Triple-A Norfolk before being released.
With the Oklahoma City Dodgers, Jones was playing well, batting .292/.427/.542 with nine home runs, 40 RBI and 34 runs scored, along with a 134 wRC+ while walking nearly as much as he struck out. That ranked him in the Pacific Coast League’s top-10 in on-base percentage and on-base plus slugging (.969)
The 24-year-old faced a tough task ahead of him to find his way onto the Dodgers roster despite his strong production, which undoubtedly led to his decision to opt out in the hopes of signing with a team that has less of a roster crunch ahead of him.
It was unlikely Jones would have been able to earn a callup to the Dodgers with Michael Busch ahead of him on the depth chart and already at Triple-A as well, along with the eventual return of Chris Taylor from the 10-day injured list.
Over his Minor League career, Jones has hit .259/.347/.404/.751 across 646 games and 2,474 at-bats with 124 doubles, 31 triples, 58 home runs, 282 RBI and 408 runs scored. Primarily a second baseman, Jones also has experience at third base as well as all three outfield spots.
Jahmai Jones contributed in record-setting OKC Dodgers win
Early in June, the OKC Dodgers concluded a six-game series against the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas with a record-setting performance in a 24-5 victory at Southwest University Park on Sunday.
During the contest, Jones extended his hitting streak to 17 games, which was the longest stretch by an OKC player since Alex Verdugo hit safely in 20 consecutive games from June 8-30, 2017.
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