Guardians Option Elite Prospect To Triple-A

As the No. 6 overall prospect for the Cleveland Guardians, 24-year-old outfielder Nolan Jones has had his first taste of major league ball last month, and he raked. After tearing the cover off the ball for his first dozen games in July, however, he's hit the rookie wall quick, and has been optioned back to Triple-A. 

For the record: I still think Nolan Jones will be a good Major League hitter.

He was scorching for a hot minute, and showed he can hit.

Teams have adjusted.

He needs to adjust back. He’s going to be okay. He has 86 ML AB.

— La Mole (@FranmilsEyebrow) August 21, 2022

In his first 12 games, Jones hit .333 with a .965 OPS and 9 RBIs. Since then, he's cooled off considerably, batting .204 with a .526 OPS in his last 15 games with just four RBIs. 

He'll head back to Columbus in AAA, where he was hitting .311 with a .417 on-base percentage, and a .917 OPS. He had a slow start in Triple-A in 2021, and a high ankle sprain late that year kept him out of action until May of this season, but he hit the ground the running, and quickly adjusted to that level.

There's every reason to still be bullish on Jones, who will have every chance to figure out how to adjust to big league pitching as well, just as he did in Triple-A.

For reference: Andres Gimenez’s first 85 AB in 2021 with Cleveland left him slashing .177/.217/.294

Just let them figure it out. Most prospects are closer to Nolan Jones’ learning curve than they are to Steven Kwan. 2022 has spoiled us. Take a breath. https://t.co/vOZWjiVeNJ

— La Mole (@FranmilsEyebrow) August 21, 2022

Jones was actually a big-time hockey prospect at a younger age, before concussion issues forced him to hang up the skates and pick up the baseball gear. 

Photos: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports, Brian Fluharty-USA TODAY Sports