Ranking the Rockies: No. 20, Greg Jones

The speedster shined in Triple-A but appeared in just six games with the Rockies

You’re reading the 2024 edition of Ranking the Rockies, where we take a look back at the season had by every player to play for the Rockies in 2024. The purpose of this list is to provide a snapshot of the player in context. The “Ranking” is an organizing principle that’s drawn from Baseball Reference’s WAR (rWAR). It’s not something the staff debated. We’ll begin with the player with the least amount of rWAR and end up with the player with the most.

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No. 20, Greg Jones (0.1 rWAR)

The Colorado Rockies are well known for making confusing and head-scratching moves. In the middle of spring training this year, the Rockies swung a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays, acquiring former first-round pick Greg Jones in exchange for Joe Rock, one of the Rockies’ top pitching prospects.

Jones, 26, had been drafted 22nd overall in 2019 and while he hadn’t been terrible in the minors, he hadn’t exactly flourished in the Rays system. Once he fell in the pecking order for a job at shortstop the Rays decided to try him out in the outfield, particularly in center field, to see if his speed could open up more opportunities for him.

His efforts proved successful in 2023, especially in Triple-A where he clubbed seven home runs in 51 games and had an .811 OPS. Still it wasn’t enough to crack through and really give the Rays a reason to give him a place on the big league team.

So why would the Rockies acquire Jones?

“He’s making strides with the bat, and you’re talking about an athlete with tools. He brings a tool set that we don’t have currently in our organization,” Rockies general manager Bill Schmidt said at the time of the trade. “It’s impact speed. He’s primarily a shortstop, but we always saw he could play the outfield, too. They moved him to center to showcase his athleticism.”

While the speed, versatility and athleticism sound like good action words, the bottom line is that the Rockies were desperately trying to find backup options at shortstop and center field for Ezequiel Tovar and Brenton Doyle and they figured Jones would be a valuable piece.

Instead, Jones spent the entirety of the 2024 season with the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes, save a brief six-game stint with the Rockies, while Alan Trejo won the utility infielder job out of camp, the Rockies traded for Jake Cave, and Tovar and Doyle played in nearly every single game, rarely needing a backup. Still, he seemed excited for the change of scenery.

Jones ended up playing in 86 games with the Isotopes, slashing a solid .269/.346/.460 in 406 plate appearances. The switch-hitter displayed plenty of power with a career-high 16 home runs and 42 RBI while showcasing his greatest tool; his speed.

The Rockies have definitely lacked speed over the years, and Jones lived up to the hype by becoming just the third player in Isotopes history to steal 40 bags in a season, as he ended up with 46. Even more impressive is the fact that Jones was caught stealing just three times.

After losing the month of May to injury, Jones was called up to the big league squad on June 6 along with Michael Toglia after Sean Bouchard and Kris Bryant were placed on the injured list. While Toglia was getting regular playing time, Jones was mainly relegated to late-game defensive replacement and pinch-hitter for his six games, making just one start.

In six games he went 1-for-6 with four strikeouts and a walk but his first career hit did come in the form of a solo home run in the ninth inning at Coors Field against the Los Angeles Dodgers in an eventually 9-5 loss.

Jones was sent back to Albuquerque two days later on the 19th where he would finish the season, unclear about where he fits into the Rockies plans. There were other opportunities for Jones to get an extended look with the big league squad but the team chose to carry Aaron Schunk on the roster for the remainder of the year after he was called up at the end of June.

Defensively Jones is carried by his speed. It allows him to have great range at shortstop and center field, but his inexperience can still show up at the latter position. Still, there is potential in the glove as showcased by the impressive catches he made with the Isotopes.

It’s hard to pinpoint exactly how the Rockies may view Jones going forward. In their efforts to improve the bench with some experience, it may be hard to justify putting Jones on the bench as a rookie despite some of his versatility, speed, and bat potential. His lack of walks and an abundance of strikeouts also pose an obstacle that negates the speed he provides.

It’s still difficult to decipher what the Rockies were thinking when acquiring Jones. With the two positions he plays locked up with two Gold Glove winners who made massive strides offensively in 2024, there isn’t much room for him to play unless he adds other infield positions to his repertoire. Even then, he’s not exactly the ideal bench bat for a team looking to improve its bench options for the coming season. Truthfully, at the end of the day and through no fault of his own, Jones was not a player the Rockies needed to acquire. However, it would be good to give him a fair shake in spring training or give him an opportunity somewhere else.

Lastly, just in case you were curious, Rock had a solid year in Triple-A for the Rays where he struck out a career-best 132 batters in a career-high 139 ²⁄₃ innings while posting a 4.58 ERA over 27 appearances, including 23 starts.

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