Kuzul

On October 5, the illustrious career of Larry "Chipper" Jones came to an end following the Atlanta Braves' disappointing loss to the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2012 NL Wild Card Game.After 19 seasons, the 40-year-old Jones finished with a lifetime .303 average, 468 home runs and 1,623 RBI. He is without question going to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in a matter of years, and most likely in his first year of eligibility.Although the pitching of former teammates Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz gave the Braves of the 1990s and early 2000s their most prominent identity, Jones has been the team's offensive identity for his entire career. He spent every year he had with the Braves and was very successful, especially as a switch-hitter.With Jones' career now over, how would he compare to the greatest third basemen of all time? Here are the ...

Chipper Jones has played his last game for the Atlanta Braves, but there's no doubt his career finale went about as badly as possible. A stand-up player like Jones deserved the perfect send-off, but as we all know, that doesn't always happen. On the brighter side, Jones is leaving the game not having hit a wall at the age of 40. Jones hit .287 with 14 homers and 62 RBI, making it clear that he could still contribute in a big way if he chose to continue his career. But despite all that, Jones' last game was a nightmare and here's why.   Infield Fly Rule-Gate The 2012 National League Wild Card game won't be remembered as Jones' last game, but rather the game the umpires got it wrong with a controversial call. Andrelton Simmons' pop up to short left field looked like a routine play, but instead the ball ...

Heading into the bottom of the ninth inning against the Phillies on September 2, dreary skies clouded the spirits of Braves Country.Down 7-3, Atlanta was in danger of extending its recent skid (in which the club dropped 10 of 14 games) by virtue of getting swept by Philadelphia. However, the Braves would mount a rally and found themselves within two runs with two on and two outs and Chipper Jones strutting to the plate.What happened next is something I believe will be looked back on as perhaps the turning point in Atlanta's 2012 season.  With the count 1-1, Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon tried to sneak a 95 mile an hour four-seamer on the outside corner past Chipper, probably to set him up for a devastating slider. Unfortunately for Papelbon, he missed his spot, and the four-seamer ended up right over the plate.And a four-seamer over the heart of the plate is ...

They say that baseball is a young man's game.The constant running, training and wear-and-tear placed on a man's body can be grueling. Over the years, it can cause even the healthiest of men to break down. Every so often, there are those players that defy that logic. Some may call it luck, while others consider it good genes; at the end of the day, however, it all boils down to the love of the game.To take a look at MLB History, there have been numerous players who have managed to stay in the game through their late 30s. At that point, the numbers drop off.The purpose of this list is to look at those players to managed to play at a high, or fairly high, level after reaching the age of 40.More so, if they were a position player, they must have put in over 100 games of work. If they're ...

Since Sunday's MLB All-Star teams were revealed, there's been quite a bit of griping over which players were voted or selected to the American League and National League rosters. But ultimately, we're talking about an exhibition, one that should provide baseball with a showcase. Ideally, that means the best of the best—not necessarily the most popular—should be on the field during the All-Star Game. But the game also presents an opportunity to pay tribute to some of the sport's longtime stars, those who have become legends before their playing days have ended. So, MLB did the right thing in naming Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones to the NL All-Star team, regardless of whether or not he won the Final Vote for the last spot on the roster.The fans were getting this one right anyway, as Jones was the leading vote-getter among the five finalists. He's put in 19 years as a ...

Chipper Jones fans, don't worry about trying to get the Atlanta Braves third baseman to his eighth All-Star Game by selecting him in the "Final Vote"—he is already in.As a reward for his fine season, the 40-year-old is being named to the squad as a replacement for injured L.A. Dodgers star Matt Kemp. David O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution broke the news. While a case can certainly be made for others to earn this spot, Jones' replacement selection is not startling. He is having a solid season while hitting .291 with six home runs and 29 RBI. These numbers look even more impressive given that he has played in just 45 games this year. These are not overwhelming stats, but they are very respectable, and Jones still does an acceptable job at third base. However, what really gives Jones an added edge here is that he is Chipper Jones. Jones, who has had a fantastic career, announced ...

Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones is playing in his 19th and final major league season, and it sounds like he's going to make an eighth and final All-Star appearance next week.Earlier on Tuesday, Major League Baseball revealed that Jones is the leading vote-getter on the National League side of the fence in the "Final Vote" for this year's All-Star game. We don't know the exact totals, but Jones apparently leads St. Louis Cardinals third baseman David Freese by a "slim margin."Well played, America. This is as good a sign as any that you are all aware of the situation and that you have respect for a player who very much deserves respect. Help yourself to a cookie for getting this one right...so far.UPDATE: Tuesday, July 3 at 5:45 p.m. ETWell, this is awkward. The Braves just tweeted this: Braves 3B Chipper Jones has been named to the NL All-Star ...

The Atlanta Braves are one of the hottest teams in baseball right now, having won nine of their last 10 games.And, they've done it with a combination of pitching and hitting.With their recent success, and the early-season questions of needing to acquire another outfielder to take the place of Martin Prado, I'm wondering if it's best for the Braves to stand pat with their lineup.Currently, I believe the Braves don't have to make a move since the offense and defense are performing well.After an offseason in which they tried to trade away Prado and pitcher Jair Jurrjens, the Braves saw nothing interesting on the trade front, bringing both back for this season.This alone caused crying among Braves' fans who felt that general manager Frank Wren needed to make a move to improve the lineup.With the 0-4 start, many were sitting back saying the same things due to the lack of ...

Atlanta Braves fans just got some news that is not all that pleasing--Chipper Jones will have arthroscopic surgery on Monday and miss the start of the regular season.While the fact that Jones is injured is not that surprising to fans, as we've seen that happen many times over the last few years, it's the fact that he'll start out the season on the disabled list in what is his final season as a pro ballplayer.According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution David O'Brien, the injury happened about an hour before Jones' Thursday news conference in which he announced he would retire at the end of this season.In this, his 19th season with the Braves, Jones hopes to return for the Braves home opener against the Brewers on April 13.The injury is to the meniscus in his left knee and will force him to miss the Braves first two road series against the ...

Nobody likes a know-it-all, or even worse, someone who can't wait to utter the words "I told you so."With that in mind, I have to say that I've waited quite a while to say this, but, I told you so. I told you all, yet most of you brutally criticized me when I wrote that Chipper Jones was the most overrated player in baseball, even though I was right.As a Mets fan, Chipper Jones had been a thorn in my side for years. After announcing that he will retire after the 2012 season this past Thursday, all those memories of late-inning, late season homers sailing through the Queens night and over Shea Stadium's blue wall came rushing back, and my vitriol for the switch hitting future Hall of Famer came rushing back as if it were 1999, when Jones seemingly hit 30 of his career best 45 home runs against ...