How much more upside do you think Jones has?

Written by Frobby

In a lot of the posts about Adam Jones, I read statements like "he still has a lot of upside." So my question is, exactly how much upside do you think he has?

Jones has been playing for 4 full seasons.

2008: .270/.311/.400, 9 HR, 57 RBI, 86 OPS+.
2009: .277/.335/.457, 19 HR, 70 RBI, 105 OPS+
2010: .284/.325/.442, 19 HR, 69 RBI, 108 OPS+
2011: .280/.319/.466, 25 HR, 83 RBI, 114 OPS+

To me, it's a pretty consistent performance. You have to like the fact that his OPS+ has increased every year. Yet, you can't like the fact that his OBP peaked in 2009 and his pitch selectivity hasn't really improved at all. With 2400 PA under his belt, you'd have to be pretty optimistic to think he is going to learn to lay off breaking stuff in the dirt with 2 strikes.

I personally think we will see a lot of seasons like the last 3, and maybe a couple where he gets his OPS in the .825ish range by having a slightly better BA and a few extra homers. I don't see Jones exploding into .850+ territory.

What's your view?

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