andruw jones is in my hall of famer collection

in a week we will know if any players from the "classic" era will be inducted into the hall of fame. we will have to wait a few weeks longer to find out if andruw jones will make it in 2025. i decided that regardless of what the writers decide to do, i would add him to my hall of famer collection and so i did, with this card serving as his entry:

that's a 2021 topps chrome black refractor autograph numbered 148/150. here's the back:

topps goofed and kept the "base" text on the back for the parallels, as this is clearly a refractor.

jones was clearly a hall of fame caliber player during the first 12 years of his career. those are the years he spent with the braves, winning 10 gold gloves in a row, and helping the club to their impressive era of divisional and league dominance. he was terrible as a dodger in 2008, his first year outside of atlanta, but he rebounded a bit in his final four seasons when he played for three teams in the american league.

jones was a multi-tool threat in that he hit for power and fielded his position well, including by using his arm to cut down a high number of baserunners. case in point, he led the league (and the majors) in home runs and rbi in 2005 while also leading the league in outfield assists. he finished second in the mvp voting that year which is the closest he came to winning that award.

i saw him play in person twice. first on may 25, 1997 when he was 1 for 4 with a stolen base and then again on june 10, 2002. that was the 15 inning game i saw at the metrodome, and jones played the entire game, going 1 for 6. while he falls just short of my hall of fame sniff test of reaching base 3,000 times, his defense and presence on those successful braves teams puts him over the top for me. and i forgive him for 2008.

remember, you can see jones and all of the members of my hall of famer collection here.