Scrappers' Jones continues torrid August
Nolan Jones expects a lot out of himself, but understanding he doesn't have to do it all alone has helped the 19-year-old turn the corner in his second professional season.The fifth-ranked Indians prospect stayed hot in August by recording the first career four-hit game of his career in Mahoning Valley's
Nolan Jones expects a lot out of himself, but understanding he doesn't have to do it all alone has helped the 19-year-old turn the corner in his second professional season.
The fifth-ranked Indians prospect stayed hot in August by recording the first career four-hit game of his career in Mahoning Valley's 6-3 win over Batavia in 11 innings at Dwyer Stadium in the first game of Monday's doubleheader. He finished 4-for-6 with a triple and two RBIs, including the go-ahead run in the 11th.
"I'm just taking the pressure off myself and really relying on my teammates," Jones said. "We have a really good group of guys who are constantly getting on base, putting the ball in play, so I kind of just changed my mentality up there from trying to do too much to just trying to do the little things like getting the runners over and scoring them ... kind of trying to do whatever I can to help the team."
Gameday box score
The 2016 second-round pick got things start in the first inning with an RBI triple to the gap in right-center field off Alejandro Mateo to put the Scrappers on the board.
"I was sitting on an off-speed pitch because the pitcher was ahead," Jones said. "He gave me a changeup and he left it up a little bit, so I just put a good swing on it. It rolled a lot further than I thought it did, so off the bat, I was thinking a sure double. I knew the guy on first, Austen Wade, was fast, so I was hoping he was going to be able to score. And then when I saw the ball keep rolling, I just extended it to a triple."
After striking out in the third, the left-handed hitter beat out on an infield single in the fifth and lined a single to left in the seventh.
"My approach is the same as always -- just hit the fastball hard," Jones said. "I'm just up there trying to put the ball in play, honestly."
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The third baseman struck out again in the ninth, but got another chance to deliver in the 11th when Wade singled with two outs and swiped second for his third stolen base of the season.
"It was huge," Jones said. "He's been really clutch this year. I think he's still trying to get used to the difference between college ball and professional ball, so I think his lack of stolen bases right now is catching up to him there. But it was a huge time for a stolen base. He got it really easily without a throw, so I'm sure there's plenty more where that came from."
On the following pitch, the Pennsylvania native pulled a single between first and second to drive in Wade and put the Scrappers ahead for the first time since his triple in the first.
"Our pitchers were battling all game and with a doubleheader, I was hoping we could just get it over with," Jones said. "I was just looking for a pitch over the plate to put it in play."
Following a single by Oscar Gonzalez, Ulysses Cantu ripped a double that plated Jones and Gonzalez to give Mahoning Valley a three-run cushion it held onto.
Jones went 0-for-3 in the Scrappers' 2-0 win in the nightcap, but the four hits raised his slash line to .370/.480/.580 in August after he hit .257 in June and .237 in July.
"I'm tough on myself, so I was putting a lot of the pressure on myself, just wanting to be successful. It was kind of impacting my play, where if my first at-bat wasn't successful or maybe there was a couple of bad calls or something, it would kind of carry over," Jones said. "But now I would let that go and focus pitch by pitch.
"I think there's definitely a ton of room for improvement in all aspects of my game, but I think from the day I was drafted to now, I've made a huge amount of progress. I could only thank all the coaches and coordinators here for helping me with that. But I'm really excited to see where it could keep going."
Michael Peng is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @MichaelXPeng.
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