ATLANTA — Bryce Hubbard had his preconceived notions about what Druw Jones would be like.
Hubbard arrived at Wesleyan (Norcross, Ga.) High School as a junior after California shut down high school sports during the COVID pandemic. The catcher already had committed to SEC power Mississippi State and had been around plenty of elite baseball prospects in his travels.
He had never crossed paths with Jones, though he knew Druw was the son of former Braves star Andruw Jones and had the reputation of being one of the best prep players in the nation.
“I was expecting what anyone would expect from a big-time superstar at that age — someone who is a little closed off,” Hubbard said. “He is the direct opposite of that. He is one of the best teammates I’ve ever had. He just tries to mentor all the guys, mentor the outfielders. He loves it when you treat him as just a normal guy.”
The teams at the top of this weekend’s MLB Draft will not be treating him as just a normal guy. Jones is about to hear his named called very, very early — possibly No. 1 overall to the Orioles. For a high school player, he has the tools, pedigree and projection worthy of that kind of investment. And, well, let’s just say people feel like they’ve seen this before.
“Of all the kids with bloodlines and their dads played in the big leagues, he’s as close to his dad as anyone I've ever seen,” said a scout of a team with a top 10 pick who has seen Jones over the years. “Maybe Griffey. Now listen, I don’t think the kid is Ken Griffey Jr. But this kid plays center field about as good as you can play center field. He could play Double-A center field right now. He’s that good defensively.”
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Andruw Jones was born on the Caribbean island of Curacao and was signed by the Braves at 16. By 18, he was in Single-A, and by 19 he was hitting home runs in the World Series — the youngest player ever to do so. Jones put together a career that is receiving Hall of Fame consideration (he received 41 percent support in the most recent voting and has five more years to reach the necessary 75 percent). He won 10 Gold Gloves, played in five All-Star Games and was second in MVP voting in 2005 when he hit 51 home runs. His production nosedived after age 30, but he still finished with 434 home runs and the label as one of the best defensive outfielders of all time.
Druw has some impressive numbers of his own. As a senior for his Class A Private state-championship winning team, he hit .570 with a .675 on-base percentage and 13 home runs in 40 games. He scored 72 runs, stole 32 bases and had a hit in all 40 games while also compiling a 10-1 record on the mound with 53 strikeouts in 41 innings.
Those video-game numbers and his defensive prowess added the Gatorade Georgia Player of the Year, Georgia MaxPreps Player of the Year and Rawlings National Gold Glove awards to his trophy case in 2022.
“He’s got the frame, and it’s scary — he walks exactly like his dad,” the scout said. “He moves exactly like his dad defensively. When he’s running the bases, it is a lot like Andruw. As we know, Andruw had power. It just came quicker for Andruw. People ask Andruw, compare yourself to your son. And he would say, ‘I don’t know. I was in the big leagues at (19).’ His power came quicker than Druw’s, but they are just so similar.”
Beyond the numbers and the famous father, however, Jones has impressed those around him with his attitude that is more confidence than cockiness, and a maturity level that has allowed him to approach his assumed path to the major leagues in stride.
He remained at Wesleyan, from kindergarten through 12th grade, despite opportunities to transfer to more baseball-focused schools such as IMG Academy. His summer travel ball was elite, playing for Perfect Game and USA Baseball, but he remained dedicated to his high school team all four years. Some players can struggle when they return to high school ball after playing with elite, year-round players in the summer, but that was not an issue with Jones.
“He never put himself above somebody,” Hubbard said. “If somebody makes an error, he’s the one to pick him up. If somebody misses the ball, he’s the one picking it up and throwing it back in. He never showed anybody up.”
After getting so much notoriety in baseball circles, Jones was often the target of some chirping from opposing fans and players. The chant “over-rated” could be heard when he came to the plate, and often, he had an answer.
Amidst chants of “overrated”, CF Druw Jones gets a hold of 92 up and goes out to the deepest part of the park. pic.twitter.com/tREKGVWxGX
— Will Hoefer (@whoeferbaseball) March 2, 2022
“It got to the point where the opposing team would turn to their student section and say, ‘What are you doing? Be quiet! Don’t you know?’” said Brian Krehmeyer, Wesleyan’s head coach since 2012.
Krehmeyer remembers when Jones was a freshman and showed up to tryouts a few weeks late because he was playing on the varsity basketball team that had reached the state tournament. Jones came out late after watching basketball film, and Krehmeyer did his best to just ease Jones into things.
“We had set up a scrimmage,” Krehmeyer said. “There was a silence when he walked on the field. The players were stretching. They were all talking about the scrimmage, and when he arrived, there was a hushed silence.
“I pulled Druw off to the side and said, ‘Hey Druw, I don’t want to put you in this situation that you aren’t ready for. We have our No. 1 and 2 pitching today. I don’t know when the last time you saw live pitching. I can pull you off to the side and do some hitting in the cage and get you some defensive work.’
“He says, ‘Coach, I’ll be OK. I got this.’ The first play that comes to him is a ball hit to right-center, and he fields it and throws a guy out at third base. Just a laser. That got everyone nodding their heads.
“And then it was his turn to get up. Gets a single. Steals second. Steals third. Here’s a freshman coming off the basketball court making impact plays against guys three-four years older than him. That was impressive. You knew he belonged.”
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Four years later, he sits atop almost every team’s draft board. After a strong summer that saw his stock rise in showcase events, Wesleyan games became the final chance to evaluate Jones for scouts this spring. The number of teams dwindled as the year progressed, as teams outside the top 10 knew they had no shot at him. At one game, three general managers were in attendance to get an in-person look.
Jones was raised by his mother Nicole after her divorce from Andruw, but Khremeyer said the family is cordial and Andruw has been involved in his son’s baseball development. Andruw sat in center field most Wesleyan games with former Braves teammate and fellow Wesleyan dad Jeff Blauser, whose son Cooper is headed to Clemson. Andruw gave the team a talk on his philosophy on hitting this season and provided other support for the program.
Druw signed with Vanderbilt, but the feeling is his pro career will start sometime this summer. He will be represented by Scott Boras, and the family has decided to limit his media availability until after the draft. Jones already has 125,000 followers on Instagram, so he’s not exactly an unknown quantity, but the majority of his posts are about teammates and fellow baseball players.
“He would prefer not to be in the spotlight,” Krehmeyer said. “His mother has raised him to be very humble and appreciative. He’s the type of kid who pushes in his chair when he gets up, says ‘thank you, you’re welcome, yes sir, no sir.’ He’s well-mannered. He’s in this world but not of this world.”
In a few days, his world is about to get a lot bigger.
