Adam Jones named 2012 Most Valuable Oriole
The Orioles today announced that ADAM JONES has been voted winner of the 2012 Louis M. Hatter Most Valuable Oriole Award by members of the local media who cover the team on a regular basis. Jones is the seventh Oriole to win the award in consecutive seasons, joining FRANK ROBINSON (1966-67), BOOG POWELL (69-70), JIM PALMER (72-73), EDDIE MURRAY (81-85), CAL RIPKEN, JR. (90-91) and RAFAEL PALMEIRO (95-96). He will be recognized for his accomplishments in an on-field ceremony prior to today’s home finale against the Boston Red Sox.
Jones has played in every Orioles game this season and, entering today’s game, had set new career-highs in games played (158; tied for the ML lead), runs (102; the first Oriole to score 100+ runs since BRIAN ROBERTS in 2009 and tied for 4th in the AL), hits (183; 7th in the AL), doubles (39; tied for 8th in the AL), home runs (32, 8th in the AL), stolen bases (15), extra-base hits (74; tied for 4th in the AL), average (.288), OBP (.336), SLG (.510), OPS (.846) and total bases (324; 3rd in the AL) this season. With one more double, he will become the fifth Oriole in club history with a 40-double/30-home run season, joining AUBREY HUFF (2008), MIGUEL TEJADA (04), Palmeiro (1996) and Ripken (91).
In 2012, Jones became the first player in the last 40 years to hit three game-winning home runs in the 12th inning or later in one season (17th inn., May 6 @BOS; 15th inn., May 16 @KC; and 12th inn., June 9 vs. PHI). He is the first player since MARK McGWIRE (1988) to homer in the 15th inning or later twice in the same season. Jones had a career-long 20-game hit streak, May 10-29, during which he batted .358/.398/.716. He also had three separate hit streaks of 10 games or more in the O’s first 40 games, the first Oriole to have three such streaks since Roberts in 2005.
On May 27, Jones signed a six-year contract extension through 2018. In addition to his on-field excellence, Jones is nearly as well-known for his work in the local community. He donates his time and resources to local Boys and Girls Clubs, Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities, the Y of Central Maryland, BARCS and Baltimore City Schools. For his outstanding community service, this past Friday was awarded a key to the city of Baltimore by Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. Additionally, he is the Orioles’ nominee and a finalist for the Marvin Miller Award, given by the MLB Player’s Association.
The Most Valuable Oriole Award is named in honor of the late Lou Hatter, a former sportswriter for the Baltimore Sun who covered the Orioles for 27 years. Balloting for the Most Valuable Oriole Award is conducted with voting on a 5-3-1 basis. JIM JOHNSON and MATT WIETERS also received first place votes. Johnson finished second and Wieters third in the voting. WEI-YIN CHEN and NICK MARKAKIS also received votes.