Greg Jones #70

Gregory Jones Jr.…son of Tammy and Greg Jones...Was the highest draft selection in history out of UNC Wilmington, where he hit .341/.491/.543 (76-for-223) with five home run, 36 RBI and 42 stolen bases in 63 games (62 GS) as a sophomore in 2019…ranked fifth among Division I players and led the Colonial Athletic Association in steals…led the conference in on-base percentage, triples, runs (70) and walks (55), and ranked second in average and hits…his nine triples and 42 stolen bases both tied single-season program records...Ranked by Baseball America as having the Best Speed among college players in the 2019 First-Year Player Draft.

2024

Made his Major League debut on June 6, 2024 as a defensive replacement in right field at St. Louis…acquired via trade with Tampa Bay on March 21 in exchange for LHP Joe Rock...Recalled on June 6 from Triple-A Albuquerque, his first time on active Major League roster...Connected on his first career hit on June 17 vs. Los Angeles-NL, a pinch-hit home run in the ninth inning...Became the first player in franchise history to hit a pinch-hit home run for their first Major League hit, the first player in the Majors to do so in the ninth inning or later since Paul DeJong (St. Louis) on May 28, 2017…11th Rockie to homer for his first hit, the first since Brian Serven on May 21, 2022 vs. New York-NL (G2)...Optioned on June 19 after making one start (June 9 at St. Louis) and appearing in six total games…appeared in four games defensively, all in right field...In 86 games for Albuquerque, slashed .269/.346/.460 with 17 doubles, two triples, 16 home runs, 42 RBI and 46 stolen bases...Finished third in the Pacific Coast League in steals…became the third Isotope in history to steal 40 or more bases in a season…tied for third in steals among Rockies Minor Leaguers...With Albuquerque, started 62 games in center field, 14 games at shortstop and eight games at second base...On the 7-day injured list April 23 (retro to April 22)-June 1 with a left thumb injury…appeared in three rehab games with the ACL Rockies...Recorded an 18-game hitting streak Aug. 25-Sept. 15 (.313/.383/.475), tied for the longest streak in the PCL in 2024. 

2023

Opened the season with Double-A Montgomery before earning a May 11 promotion to Triple-A Durham…recalled and placed on the 60-day IL on Sept. 16 with a right hamstring strain to open a 40-man roster spot for Tristan Gray...Between the two levels, split time at center field (35GS), shortstop (25GS) and right field (6GS)...Hit .173 (47-for-169) with 3 HR, 9 RBI and 12 SB over 20 games with Montgomery compared to .278 (47-for-169) with 24 XBH (10HR), 35 RBI and 12 SB across 51 games with Durham...On April 16 vs. Tennessee (G2), went 2-for-4 with a triple, a homer and a season-high four RBI…was the only Montgomery hitter to record a triple and home run in the same game in 2023...Played his final game of the season on July 22 at Rochester…from the time of his May 11 promotion to Durham through his final contest, he led the Bulls in steals (12) while his .278 average ranked second (min. 150AB) behind Jonathan Aranda (.392).

2022

Spent the entire season with Double-A Montgomery…limited to 79 games, missing time from June 2-13 (concussion) and Sept. 3 through the end of the season (right hamstring strain)...Ranked third among Rays minor leaguers with 37 SB behind Mason Auer (48) and Shane Sasaki (47)…was fifth in the Southern League in steals...Ranked by Baseball America as the No. 19 prospect in the Rays system following the season… the publication also tabbed him as the Fastest Baserunner in the organization and in the Southern League in its Best Tools survey.

2021

In 2021, hit .270/.366/.482 (74-for-274) with 14 HR and 40 RBI in 72 games between Class-A Bowling Green and Montgomery...Named Minor League Baserunner of the Year by the Rays Baseball Operations department…was successful on 94.4 pct. (34 of 36) of stolen base attempts between the two levels...Ranked 2nd among Rays minor leaguers and tied for 3rd in High-A East in stolen bases...Named to the Rays Organizational All-Star Team by MLB.com...Did not play in the Arizona Fall League due to a quad injury...Ranked by Baseball America as the No. 6 prospect in the Rays system following the season… the publication also tabbed him as the Best Baserunner and Fastest Baserunner in High-A East in its Best Tools survey.

2020

Added to the Rays 60-man player pool on Sept. 1 and spent time at the alternate training site in Port Charlotte…missed most of the Instructional League with a minor knee injury…ranked by Baseball America as the No. 14 prospect in the Rays system following the season…the publication also tabbed him as the Best Athlete in the organization for a second consecutive year. 

2019

Named Most Valuable Player for Short-A Hudson Valley by the Rays Baseball Operations department…ranked among New York-Penn League leaders in avg. (.335, 3rd), runs (39, tied for 5th), hits (64, 9th), on-base pct. (.413, 2nd), slugging pct. (.461, 7th) and stolen bases (19, tied for 6th)… earned NYPL midseason All-Star honors and was named the system’s Player of the Month for July… his .335 avg. ranked 1st among Rays minor leaguers (min. 150 AB)…ranked by Baseball America as the No. 12 prospect in the Rays system and No. 3 prospect in the NYPL following the season.