MILWAUKEE – Throughout Spencer Jones’ first weekend in the bigs, it had been a struggle to erase concerns about his swing-and-miss tendencies. The Yankees’ No. 6 prospect struck out in four of his first six at-bats, including one against Brewers phenom Jacob Misiorowski in his first MLB plate appearance.
On Sunday at American Family Field, Jones made sure his first series as a big leaguer ended on a high note.
Jones drilled the very first pitch he saw in his second-inning at-bat against Milwaukee right-hander Logan Henderson, smoking a 106.4 liner up the middle for a single and the first hit of his MLB career. That first knock came paired with his first big league RBI, too. José Caballero cracked a double to the center-field wall in the previous at-bat, scampering home easily to give the Yankees an early 2-0 advantage.
“He was able to get his first hit, which was big,” manager Aaron Boone said after the Yankees’ 4-3 walk-off loss. “I know everyone was excited for that.”
As Jones settled in at first, he made a point to pump his fist toward the seats behind the Yankees’ dugout, where his family has been seated throughout the weekend set. They arranged their trip to Milwaukee as soon as Jones shared the news on Thursday night that he was finally getting called up to The Show.
With his single, Jones ensured their trip came complete with something big to celebrate, while giving his mom a Mother’s Day gift that’ll be tough to top in the years to come.
“It was super exciting,” Jones said. “I’m glad that my family was here to share that with me. Teammates [were] rooting me on, a lot of congratulations. I was excited to get a run across, too, for the guys. It was a pretty special moment.”
The Yankees made sure to capture the accomplishment by grabbing the game ball, which was already sitting in a display case at the top of Jones’ locker afterward. He noted he would be sure to share the ball with his family, and it still appeared to be in good shape considering how hard he hit it.
COMPLETE YANKEES PROSPECT COVERAGE
That high exit velocity was one of the calling cards that made Jones such an intriguing prospect despite the work he has been putting in to address the strikeouts. He was averaging an exit velo of 95.7 mph in the Minors, the fourth-highest mark in Triple-A.
And though Jones struck out 46 times in 120 at-bats with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, 19 of those K’s came within his first eight games of the season. He had 27 punchouts over his next 25 games, and the adjustments he has been making stood out to his new team over the weekend.
“Very composed,” Aaron Judge said of Jones. “I think that’s been the biggest thing. … For him to go out there, and it didn’t matter what the situation was or what was going on, I felt like he was taking good pitches, taking good swings.”
That those at-bats came against a Brewers staff that gave New York hitters fits throughout the series made the feat more impressive. Consistently facing high-velocity arms right out of the gate might seem like a rough way to break into the Majors. But Jones wouldn’t have it any other way.
“I think trial by fire is the best way to do it,” Jones said. “Getting exposed to a lot of good arms is the best way to get your feet wet.”
Though the outcome of the series soured an otherwise exciting weekend for Jones, his first big league hit served as quite a bright spot with his new team.
“Ecstatic,” Judge said of New York’s dugout reaction. “Everybody was waiting for it. Just happy his family could be here for him.
“We see the work he’s put in all the way from Spring Training, and even the year before, where he had a fantastic year in the Minor Leagues and you kind of think he might get the call then. Not getting the call and seeing some of that work pay off, it’s just a special moment. Happy to be here with it.”