Jared
Jones

Also known as Bear Jones, Jared has Paul Bunyon strength for 80-grade raw power. A draft-eligible sophomore, his top EV so far this season is 118 mph. Standing 6-foot-4, and weighing 250-pounds, Jones miss-hits balls 350’. He has good balance in the box with length to his swing. During an overall strong freshman season when he batted .302 with 14 home runs, he also struck out in 34% of his plate appearances. With this in mind he has focused this season on pitch selection and strike zone discipline while making improvements to his swing decisions. To date this season he has cut his strikeout rate to 24%. Still on the high side, but a remarkable improvement. Statistics also show that the right-handed power hitter does a very good job of utilizing his raw power by elevating the baseball. This season his fly ball rate is nearly 50%. Combined with a line drive rate of nearly 20%, Jones puts the ball in the air close to 70% of the time. During the Vanderbilt series he did show a flatter swing path with several low line drive singles to center field. He turned around a 99 mph fastball from Greysen Carter for a 112 mph EV single to center field. Another low line drive in game two was an RBI single to centerfield with an EV of 112. And a third was a 2-iron shot, again to centerfield with a 113 EV that was so hot it skipped right past Vanderbilt’s Calvin Hewett who looked fooled by the fast-hop velocity. A converted catcher, Jones now plays first base where his hands are solid and just the everyday experience of playing the position will improve his decisions and communications on ground balls with his fellow infielders, especially with the pitcher on when to cover the bag or pursue the slow chop tweener. Currently our No. 66 ranked college prospect, Jones is in the mix with other ‘23 draft-eligible college first basemen of similar profile (not named Caglianone or Kurtz) with power as their top tool; Blake Burke is the leader of that group with Hunter Hines, Jeremiah Jenkins, Corey Collins and Jacob Walsh all behind Jones.

Cape Cod: Was a late arrival on the Cape, and he struggled to a much greater degree than his Tigers teammate, batting .190 with 23 strikeouts in 58 at-bats, though he did occasionally show off the light tower power that is his calling card. Jones came to LSU with the ability to catch, but he’s behind fellow underclassmen Brady Neal at that position with the Tigers and has settled in as more of a first baseman, which is where he spent a majority of his time this summer with the Whitecaps.

LSU commit. 6-foot-4, 230-pound right-handed hitting catcher and first baseman, physically imposing with grown man strength throughout frame. Quiet at the plate with smooth rhythm in hands. Enormous amount of power. Facing Oklahoma State commit Luke Fernandez, took a first pitch 90 mph fastball deep to left field for a two run home run, 102 exit velocity.

LSU commit. No. 4 ranked player in the Georgia ‘22 class, and No. 9 Nationally. Jones picked up where he left off last year at the GDC tournament by continuing to put on an offensive show. Jones started the weekend off with two homeruns in Game One. In what was already one of the top swings in the country, Jones has only gotten better; the lower-half creates more leverage than before, and the hands and bat speed create serious power. Both homeruns on night one carried over 400 feet, including a 423 foot homerun on an 0-2 breaking ball that left the bat at 110mph. Jones is always a must-watch at-bat and it is scary to think there is still another full high school season ahead of him.

LSU commit. 6-foot-4, 230-pound right-handed hitting catcher, physically advanced in all areas with strength and shows no signs of slowing down. We have had the opportunity to see Jones a number of times early in the season, and he is consistently hitting for power. There is aggression in the swing, any time he makes contact the ball flies off the bat like very few can make it do. Has good feel for hitting and is able to use the whole field.

LSU commit. 6-foot-4, 230-pound right-handed hitting, big, strong frame, physically advanced, looks like he adds more and more strength every time we see him. Has easy bat speed and raw power in his swing, uses the full force of his strength as he shifts weight off his back leg through contact. Had a number of extra bases hits throughout the weekend, including a grand slam that left the yard in a hurry..

Jared “Bear” Jones checks in at a whopping 6-foot-4, 225 pounds and leaves zero doubt about why he is also known as Bear. Jones participated in the Future Games amidst attending Football workouts, but you never would of known from his performance at this event. Jones drew plenty of attention during the showcase portion of the event, sending baseballs deep into the night.  His exit velocity of 102 ranked 2nd in this event among a strong nationally ranked crowd. The imposing right handed swing of Jones at time appears to have an uppercut swing, but more importantly he gets on the same plane with the baseball and has the ability to stay balanced with a nice easy stroke, finding the bat-head frequently. Especially for a young power hitter. Defensively the big “Bear” from Walton high school showed very well in the workout, posting a pop times as low as 1.90, which puts him in pretty elite company. His arm strength is plenty as he turned in the 3rd best reading at 82 mph. Jones spent most of his summer with East Cobb at first base in order to give himself more versatility in the future and those reps have paid off, but Jones will be back behind the plate this Spring, where he started as a Freshman for a very good baseball program in 7A. Jones is already a big name on the east coast, but after this event and the schools showing interest, look for Jones to be a player on the national scene going forward.