With Opening Day less than three weeks away, free agent and longtime Orioles center fielder Adam Jones has finally landed with a new team.
Sunday afternoon former big leaguer and NL Rookie of the Year Dontrelle Willis reported Jones is signing with the Diamondbacks. Jeff Passan of ESPN has since confirmed the deal. It is a one-year contract.
I must say, Dontrelle Willis breaking a free agent signing with a Dumb & Dumber GIF on Twitter is very appropriate for the state of baseball in 2019.
Anyway, the D-Backs are set on the outfield corners with Steven Souza and David Peralta, meaning Jones will likely return to center field with Ketel Marte becoming more of a super utility guy. Jones also gives the club a righty platoon option for lefty hitting Peralta. Manager Torey Lovullo could fill out his lineup card like so:
3B Eduardo EscobarCF Adam JonesLF David PeraltaRF Steven Souza1B Jake Lamb2B Wilmer FloresSS Nick AhmedC Carson KellyPitcher's spotThe 33-year-old Jones authored a .281/.313/.419 batting line with 15 home runs last season. He moved to right field with the Orioles last August in deference to prospect Cedric Mullins. The various defensive stats (and the eye test) soured on Jones in center field in recent years.
The D-Backs traded away franchise icon Paul Goldschmidt over the winter, plus they lost Patrick Corbin and A.J. Pollock to free agency. Still, Arizona will field a roster that figures to be much more competitive than most rebuilding teams in 2019.
