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Best all-time center fielders in MLB history

By Bobby Mueller

ANAHEIM, CA - JULY 29: Mike Trout #27 of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim hits a fly ball to deep center during the ninth inning of the MLB game against the Seattle Mariners at Angel Stadium on July 29, 2018 in Anaheim, California. The Mariners defeated the Angels 8-5. (Photo by Victor Decolongon/Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA - JULY 29: Mike Trout #27 of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim hits a fly ball to deep center during the ninth inning of the MLB game against the Seattle Mariners at Angel Stadium on July 29, 2018 in Anaheim, California. The Mariners defeated the Angels 8-5. (Photo by Victor Decolongon/Getty Images) /
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CHICAGO – JULY 10: Center fielder Andruw Jones #25 of the Atlanta Braves makes the catch during the game against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on July 10, 2003 in Chicago, Illinois. The Braves defeated the Cubs 13-3. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

Best All-Time Center Fielders #12: Andruw Jones

“I love taking hits away from guys and seeing their reaction.”—Andruw Jones

How good was Andruw Jones as a young player? Consider this list of the all-time greatest center fielders through the age of 29 (sorted by Fangraphs WAR):

86.4 fWAR—Ty Cobb

85.1 fWAR—Mickey Mantle

70.1 fWAR—Tris Speaker

68.5 fWAR—Ken Griffey, Jr.

65.0 fWAR—Willie Mays

62.5 fWAR—Mike Trout (still only 26 years old)

61.0 fWAR—Andruw Jones

52.5 fWAR—Joe DiMaggio

50.7 fWAR—Duke Snider

There’s Andruw Jones, behind five Hall of Famers and Mike Trout. In his 20s, Jones had eight seasons worth 5 or more WAR, including three 7-plus WAR seasons. Those are MVP-caliber years. He was a five-time all-star who averaged 146 games, 87 runs, 31 homers, 93 RBI, and a .267/.345/.505 batting line during this peak. He also won nine of his 10 Gold Glove Awards before he turned 30 years old.

But then he turned 30 and hit .207/.304/.393 over the next three seasons. It was inexplicable that someone could drop off a cliff like Jones did. The first of these years was his final year with the Atlanta Braves, when he was still very good defensively. In the second and third years of this three-year stretch, even Jones’ glove betrayed him. Not only had his bat gone missing, his ability in center field eroded with age.

After playing a dozen years with the Braves, Jones finished his career by playing with four different teams over his final five big league seasons. He had one productive year with the Chicago White Sox in 2010 and wasn’t bad with the Yankees in 2011, but never came close to being the player he had been when he was young.

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