Name Gary Jones | ||
 | ||
Gary Wayne Jones (born November 11, 1960 in Henderson, Texas) is an American coach in Major League Baseball and a longtime minor league manager and instructor. Jones has been the third base and infield coach for the Chicago Cubs since 2014. Until his appointment, Jones had spent one season in a Major League uniform out of his 32 years in professional baseball — 1998, as the first-base coach of the Oakland Athletics.
Prior to his appointment to the 2014 coaching staff of then-Cub manager Rick Renteria, Jones spent seven years as the roving minor league infield instructor for the San Diego Padres, where Renteria had been a Major League coach. He was retained when Joe Maddon replaced Renteria as the Cubs' manager in October 2014 for the 2015 season, and in 2017 entered his fourth season as the Cubs' third-base coach, including service on 2016's National League and World Series championship team.
In joining the Cubs, Jones returned to his first MLB organization. Chicago originally signed him as a 21-year-old free agent infielder in 1982 out of the University of Arkansas. Jones played for seven years in the Cubs and Athletics farm systems, including two seasons with the Triple-A Tacoma Tigers, and batted .283 with nine home runs in 899 minor league games between 1982 and 1989. He batted left-handed, threw right-handed, stood 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m) tall and weighed 162 pounds (73 kg).
After retiring as a player, he was a manager in the Oakland, Boston Red Sox, and San Diego organizations. From 1990–97, 1999–2001 and 2003–06, Jones led teams in the International League, Pacific Coast League, Southern League, Midwest League, and Arizona Fall League. He managed the Madison Muskies, Huntsville Stars, Edmonton Trappers, Pawtucket Red Sox, Fort Wayne Wizards and Mobile BayBears. He served the Red Sox as coordinator of minor league instruction in 2002.
Jones led the Stars to the Southern League championship in 1994 and the Trappers to back-to-back Pacific Coast League championships in 1996 and 1997. He also won Manager-of-the-Year Awards in 1991 (Madison), 1994 (Huntsville), 1996 and 1997 (both with Edmonton).