Cleon Jones: All Time Mets Left Fielder (Part Two) The Seventies & Beyond

Cleon Jones (Part Two):

 After the Championship- 1970: Cleon started the season with a pair of hits & an RBI in the 5-3 Opening Day win in Pittsburgh. 

Multi- Three RBI Game: On April 16th he had his first multi-RBI game of the year, driving in three runs in a 7-4 loss to the Pirates.

Thru the first ten games he hit well to bat over .300 but then slumped & was batting at the .200 mark by the end of May, although he did have twenty RBIs.

On May 27th, Jones hit a two-run single off the Cardinals Steve Carlton, bringing two of the three runs in Gary Gentry's three hit shut out at Shea. In that game Tommie Agee stole home for the third run. 

On May 30th, Jones helped the Mets come from behind 2-0 with a 6th inning RBI single off Houston's Larry Dieker. In the 8th inning his RBI triple off Dieker tied the game. Cleon then scored what was the games winning run-on Ken Boswell's base hit. 

Jones was still struggling at the plate as he was only batting .214 entering June.

Things got a bit better, from June 12th through the 24th he collected 15 hits, batter .349 & drove in nine runs. 

Multi-Four RBI Game: On June 24th Cleon drove in four runs with a pair of two run singles, in the first game of the Mets double header sweep at Wrigley Field. Tom Seaver won his 11th game in the victory.

Cleon then missed over three weeks of action, returning July 16th. 

Upon his return he hit a HR in a 3-1 Mets loss in Los Angeles. It was a terrible road trip where the Mets lost five of eight in California to the Dodgers, Giants & Padres.

On July 27th be started a stretch where he homered in three of four games against the same West Coast teams, where the Mets won the first six of seven games. 

On August 1st, as the Mets were holding on to first place by a thread with a half game lead over the Pirates, Cleon hit a three run HR off the Padres Earl Wilson to help Tom Seaver win his 16th game, beating the Padres 4-2, keeping them in first place.

He brought the average up to .260 by the end of August & drove in twenty runs on the month, having his best production of the season.

23 Game Hit Streak: From August 25th to September 15th, Cleon had a 23-game hit streak. In that time, he batted .408 with 40 hits, 10 extra base hits & 16 RBIs. 

On September 1st, the Mets & Cards were tied up at three in the 12th inning. Jones' sac fly off Bob Gibson scored Wayne Garrett in what was the game winning run. 

On September 2nd, he tied the game with an 8th inning HR off that years Rookie of the Year Carl Morton, in Montreal. The Mets went on to win the game. He drove in seven runs in the next four days which included two double headers.

Walk Off Hit: On September 10th, he had a walk off triple against the Phillies' Joe Hoerner in the Mets 3-2 win at Shea Stadium. 

Jones hot hitting helped keep the Mets in first place. After his streak they lost six of nine & finished third. In the final two weeks he hit just .196.

For the 1970 season Jones hit .277 with 140 hits 10 HRs 25 doubles (a career high) 8 triples, 63 RBIs & 71 runs scored. He stole 12 bases, struck out 87 times with 57 walks posting a

.352 on base % & .769 OPS. He grounded into 23 double plays (most in the league) while striking out 87 times in 506 at bats. 

In left field he was third in fielding (.980%) with 10 assists.

1971 season: Jones went 0-3 in the Opening Day win over Montreal. In the second game he hit his first R of the season, in a losing effort. 

On April 18th, Cleon led the way with a two run HR & bases loaded walk in a 5-2 win over the Pirates at Shea Stadium. On April 30th Cleon drove in two runs in a 4-3 extra inning win at Houston during a Mets five game win streak.

On May 14 & May 15th he hit HRs in back-to-back games in wins at Pittsburgh. He collected six hits & four RBIs in the three-game set. On May 23rd, on the homestand back at Shea he drove in runs in three straight games. In the month he had two seven game hit streaks, to hit safely in 15 of 16 games raising his average to .297. Then he got injured & missed ten games.

Record Breaking Six Walks & Multi RBI Game: On a July 5th double header split at Shea with the Expos, he tied an NL record by drawing six walks in the double header. He also collected three hits & brought his average up over .300. In the second game, Cleon hit a three run HR off Steve Renko & had a 1st inning RBI single, giving him a four RBI game in the 8-0 Ray Sadecki three hit shutout.

On July 15th & 16th he had back-to-back multi-RBI games at the Astrodome. 

Multi Five RBI Game: On July 24th, in a 9-3 win over the Astros at Shea Stadium, he had a season high five RBI game. In the 1st inning he hit a two-run single off Bill Greif, then hit a two run double in the 2nd inning off Denny Lemaster. In the 6th, he hit another double bringing in his fifth run in the 9-3 win.

In the month he batted .400 with 33 hits, 11 extra base hits & 12 walks for a .536 on base%. From July 2nd to July 29th, he hit safely in 21 of 24 games, raising his season average up to .316.

Two Walk Off HRs: In August Jones had two walks-off HR games in the same week. 

On August 21st, Tom Seaver & the Padres Dave Roberts, went to the bottom of the 9th inning in a 1-1 tie. Cleon hit the walk off HR for the 2-2 Mets win.

On Saturday August 28th, in the second game of a double header with the Dodgers, Gary Gentry & Don Sutton battled each other in another pitcher's duel. In the bottom of the 9th, Cleon hit a walk off HR off reliever Jim Brewer for the 2-1 win & double header sweep.

In that game he collected his 21st double of the year, giving him four straight seasons with over twenty doubles.

Jones went into early September batting .330 riding on a nine-game hit streak. During the Mets four game win streak he drove in five runs with two multi-RBI games. He closed out the year driving in runs in three straight games of the final week & hitting safely in seven straight games. 

Cleon Jones led the 1971 team in batting hitting .319 finishing in seventh in the batting race. He also led the club in doubles (24) RBIs (69) hits (16) triples (6) on base % (.382) & OPS (.856). He tied with Bud Harrelson for stolen bases (28) & tied with Ed Kranepool & Tommie Agee in HRs (14). 

In left field he posted a .980 fielding % (4th in the league) had four assists, making just five errors in 230 chances.

The Mets once again finished in third place, falling 13.5 games back on July 24th never able to catch the Pirates who went on to win the World Series. No one knew it at the time, but it was to be Gil Hodges final season as he passed away to a sudden heart attack just before the start of the 1972 season. 

1972 Season: The Mets named Yogi Berra as manager to replace Gil Hodges who had passed away at the end of Spring Training. The entire organization was shocked over the loss of Hodges & it affected the team greatly. They seemed to be looking for direction, as they lost their respected leader & mentor. 

Berra's style was more laid back than that of the stern Hodges & things were different around the team. The Mets would finish third at 83-73. The season was also delayed by a player's strike, not getting underway until April 15th.

On a rainy, solemn Opening Day where the Mets paid tribute to their late manager, Cleon went 1-4

in a rain shortened Mets win over the World Champion Pirates behind Tom Seaver. 

Five RBI Doubleheader: In an April 23rd double header sweep of the Cubs at Shea Stadium, Jones collected five RBI's. In the first game, he tied the game in the 6th inning with a two run HR off Milt Pappas. Jim Fregosi followed with a HR as well leading to the 8-2 win. In the nightcap, he started out with a 4th inning two run single & later in the 5th inning he tied the game with an RBI infield single. Both hits off Bill Hands.

Injuries would plague him through the season, first in June where he missed ten games. In July he would go out for 2.5 weeks.

Walk Off Hit: On August 1st, in the first game of a doubleheader, he drove in all three Met runs in an 18 inning 3-2 win over the Phillies. In the bottom of the 18th inning, he came to bat with two on & two outs facing Darrell Brandon. Jones singled scoring Tommie Agee with the walk off winning run. In the nightcap he drove in the only run of the Mets loss to Steve Carlton.

Later in August he went down again for a week & upon his return he would be in & out of the line up.

Multi- Three RBI Game: On September 2nd, the Mets were down 8-7 to the Astros in the top of the 9th inning. They came back with the help of two Houston errors. With the bases loaded Cleon drove in two runs with a single putting them ahead 10-8. On the hit, Ed Kranepool was thrown out at third base, Cleon slid into second. He scored on Wayne Garrett's single topping off the 11-8 win.

From September 2nd to September 13th, he collected 16 hits with 14 RBIs in a 14 game-span. 

Multi Four RBI Game: On September 13th Jones drove in a season high four runs in an 11-6 victory at Philadelphia. In the 1st inning he collected an RBI single, then added a 3rd inning two run double. In the 8th inning he hit his second RBI double of the game.

Overall, the injuries limited him to 106 games (346 at bats) in 1972 as his average dropped to its lowest since becoming a regular outfielder, hitting only .245 with 5 HRs 15 doubles 52 RBIs & 39 runs scored. He posted a .345 on base % & .636 OPS. 

Cleon turned 30 years old that season, as he got older injuries would plague him for the rest of his career.

1973 NL Pennant Season: On Opening Day, Cleon hit two HRs off the Phillies Steve Carlton, scoring all three Mets runs as Tom Seaver pitched a five-hit combined shut out, striking out eight in 7.2 innings of work. Tug McGraw come on for the save.

The next day Cleon drove in a run with an RBI base hit off Jim Lonborg. The Mets won the game on Willie Mays' Walk off base hit.

In an April 19th double header with the Cubs at Shea Stadium, Jones sprained his wrist diving for a ball. He would go on the DL returning on May 11th. When he came off the DL he was hit on the elbow by a pitch and missed over a week of action, not returning to the lineup until July 7th. On the year the injuries would have him miss 70 games.

Mets Injuries: There were many injuries to the Mets starting players that year, Bud Harrelson, Jerry Grote, John Milner & Cleon all spent time on the DL as the Mets fell to last place. But the Division was tight with no one running away with anything & everyone fighting to stay above .500. 

As Jones returned the Mets were losing seven of eight games, 12.5 game back in last place. 

When the Mets started a long road trip with a four-game set in Cincinatti, no one knew it at the time, but this was an NLCS preview for later that season. On July 13th, in a doubleheader split with the Reds, Cleon got three hits & drove in three runs. In the second game he got things started with a HR off Dave Tomlin in the 7-5 Met win. 

On July 22nd, he singled to score Rusty Staub in the 1st inning of a 3-2 win at Houston. Tom Seaver pitched a complete game & won the game with a sac bunt scoring Wayne Garrett in the 7th inning.

100th Career Hit: On August 2nd, in a 5-1 win over the Pirates at Shea, Cleon Jones became the first Mets player to reach the 1000 hit mark. In the bottom of the 3rd inning with two men on, he doubled off Jim Rooker bringing in Willie Mays giving the Mets a 3-0 lead. 

Pep Talk From Yogi: When Cleon was slumping in early to mid-August, his teammates began complaining about him being lazy not giving a full effort. On the road, Mets manager Yogi Berra approached Jones in a hotel, telling him “The team needs you & I need you” Yogi then cracked a smile saying, “What are you trying to do get me fired?”

Around that time, the NY Post ran a survey on who the Mets should fire, the President M. Donald Grant, the General Manager Bob Scheffing or manager Yogi Berra. The fans voted to keep the popular Berra.

Around the end of July Yogi Berra made his famous speech saying "It Ain't Over Til It's over" Tug McGraw started the forever popular Mets slogan "You Gotta Believe" & things would soon turn around. 

Mets Climb Up the NL East: On August 5th, the Mets were 48-60 in last place, 11.5 games back. From there they went 33-19 the rest of the way, going 119-8 in September.

As Jones & the other regulars got healthier, they all began to hit or contribute in some way. Cleon closed out August hitting safely in nine of eleven games while driving in six runs.

On August 28th, he added an RBI single to the Mets five run 6th inning in an 8-6 win over the Padres. On August 29th, he doubled off the Padres Rich Troedson, with one of three straight Mets RBIs in a 3-0 combined Jerry Koosman/ Buzz Capra shut out. 

On August 31st his 10th inning RBI single broke a 3-3 tie in St. Louis leading the Mets to a 6-3 win.  In the first two weeks of September he collected just five hits, playing in just eight games.

Cleon's Hot Hitting in the Final Two Weeks: In the final ten games of the regular season, Cleon Jones hit six HRs & drove in 14 runs, leading the Mets to the incredible come back to win the NL Eastern title.

On September 15th, in the first game of a double header split with the Cubs at Shea, his two-run single in the 1st inning off Fergie Jenkins led the way to a 5-1 Mets win. The next day he drove in a run with a 1st inning sac fly in the 4-3 win over Chicago.

On September 17th the Mets opened up a two-game series in Pittsburgh, then came home for a three-game set with the Pirates. At the start of the five-game set, Pittsburgh held a 3.5 game lead over New York. The Mets split the first two games with Cleon collecting just one hit.

Multi HR- Five RBI Game: On September 19th as the series came to Shea Stadium, Cleon hit a two-run HR off Nelson Briles, giving the Mets a 2-1 lead. In the bottom of the 8th, with the Mets ahead 4-3 he blew the game open with a three run HR off Dave Guisti. He collected a season best, five RBIs, helping the Mets to a 7-3 win. 

The win was the 12th for pitcher George Stone (12-2) and more importantly brought the Mets within 1.5 games of first place. In the NL East the Cardinals & Expos were just as close right behind them.

Ironically it was a fielding play the next night that Jones had a big part in, that is looked back as being one of the highlights of the regular season. Once again Cleon was right in the middle of it, as things were pointing to another miracle season in the making. 

On September 20, 1973, long time New York legend Willie Mays announced that he would retire from the game at the end of the season. The Mets honored Mays in a pre-game ceremony on Willie Mays Night during the three-game series with those first-place Pirates.

The Ball on the Wall Game: That night, with the game tied 3-3 in the top of the 9th inning, the Pirates had Richie Zisk on at first base when Dave Augustine hit what seemed to be a sure HR ball. But the ball hit the top of the left field wall & bounced back into Jones's glove.

Jones threw a perfect relay strike to relay man Wayne Garrett, who turned & fired home to catcher Ron Hodges who held his ground, applied the tag nailing Ritchie Zisk at the plate. The Mets won it in the bottom of the 13th inning on Hodges Walk off hit. On this amazing night the Mets were withing a half a game of first place. 

On Friday September 21st the next evening, they took over first place with a 10-2 win over the Pirates in front 51,381 at Shea Stadium. In the 1st inning, Jones put the Mets on the board first with a two run double off Steve Blass.

In that home series against the Pirates, Jones had five hits with two HRs & eight RBIs. 

In the final week, the Mets fought four teams to stay atop the East.

On September 23rd, Jones drove in a pair of runs including a solo HR off the Cardinals Al Hrabosky in a 5-2 Mets victory. The win all but eliminated St. Louis as the Mets swept the two-game series dropping the Cards back four games with five left to play. Although they did win their last five games finishing one game back.

The next night the Montreal Expos, who were just three games back of the Mets came to town. In the 6th inning with the score tied at one, Jones hit a solo HR off Expo-ace Steve Rodgers leading the Mets to the 2-1 win behind Jerry Koosman & Tug McGraw's pitching.

Mets Clinch NL East: The season came down to a rainy four game series at Wrigley Field against the Chicago Cubs. On September 30th in the second game of a double header, Jones hit a 6th inning HR off Fergie Jenkins putting the Mets up 5-2. From there they went on to win the game 9-2 needing only one more win to cinch the NL East.

On October 1st in the final game of the regular season, Jones hit a 2nd inning HR off Burt Hooton putting New York on the board first. He also walked twice in the game. The Mets went on to win it 6-4 as Tom Seaver won his 19th win of the year, earning his second Cy Young Award. 

 In the last two games he hit two HRs & drove in three runs as the Mets won the NL Eastern title.

Cleon batted .260 with 15 doubles a triple 11 HRs 48 RBIs & 48 runs scored in 92 games played. He struck out 51 times walking 28 posting a .315 on base% & 710 OPS. In the outfield he posted a .960 fielding% with eight assists.

1973 Post Season: NLCS: In the 1973 NLCS against the Cincinnati Reds "Big Red Machine", Cleon continued his hot hitting. The eds were the favorite going into the series, having been the 1972 NL Champions with a powerful line up featuring three Hall of Famers & NL Batting champ Pete Rose.

In the Game #1 loss at Riverfront Stadium Jones went hitless in four at bats. 

In Game #2, Cleon was 0-2 with a walk heading to the 9th inning with the Mets holding a 1-0 lead.  

With two men on, he hit a RBI single off Red's pitcher Tom Hall that scored Felix Millan giving the Mets a 2-0 lead. He then scored on Jerry Grote’s single as the Mets won the game 5-0 behind Jon Matlack's two hit shutout.

In Game # 3 at Shea Stadium, which featured the famous Bud Harrelson vs. Pete Rose brawl, Cleon had collected two more hits with a walk and a run scored. 

In the Mets six run 2nd inning, Cleon drew a walk as the eighth man up in the inning. In the 4th inning he singled & a throwing error by Andy Kosco led to Felix Millan scoring with the Mets eighth run of the game, irking the heavily favored Reds but delighting of the wild She Stadium crowd. 

Pete Rose led the Reds frustrations by doing a pop-up slide into second base on Mets short stop
Bud Harrelson. Harrelson was not amused & told Rose he was a cheap shot-sucker. The much bigger Rose grabbed Harrelson tossing him down on the ground. 

From there all hell broke loose as benches & bullpens cleared, punches were thrown with at least two sets of fists fights breaking out. The crowd threw anything they could find at Pete Rose in left field & the Reds were pulled off the field for their safety. Tom Seaver, Willie Mays, Yogi Berra, Rusty Staub & Cleon Jones went out to the left field area to try to convince the fans to stop or they would lose the game by forfeit. Order was eventually restored & play resumed.

The Mets won the game 9-2 taking a 2-1 series lead.

In Game #4 the Mets were held to just three hits by four Reds pitchers, taking an extra inning loss. Cleon went a hitless 0-5. 

In the Game #5 clincher at a wild Shea Stadium, Jones led the Mets with three hits & two RBIs. In the 1st inning, he singled off Red's ace Jack Billingham. He then scored on Ed Kranepool’s big two run single as the Shea crowd went wild.

The Reds tied up the game at two. In the bottom of the 5th, with Wayne Garrett on second, Jones doubled off Billingham, driving home Garrett to put the Mets ahead 3-2. They Put up four runs in the inning go ahead 6-2.

In the 6th, Tom Seaver doubled to start the inning, with two outs Cleon singled bringing in Seaver, giving the Mets a 7-2 lead that would be the final score. The Mets won the NL pennant surprising everyone upsetting the Reds & advancing to the World Series to face the mighty Oakland A's.

In the NLCS Jones batting .300 (6 -20) with two doubles, two walks, three RBIs three runs scored a .364 on base% & 764 OPS.

1973 World Series: In the 1973 World Series loss to the Oakland A's, Jones had a good
Series. 

In the first two games at Oakland, the afternoon sun was a big problem for outfielders. It caused them to shade their eyes, as they misjudge fly balls & made errors.

In the 2-1 Game#1 loss, Jones went a hitless 0-4. 

In Game # #2, Cleon hit a 2nd inning solo HR off Vida Blue. 

In the top of the 12th inning, Jones singled off Rollie Fingers to load the bases. He later scored on a fielding error by second baseman Mike Andrews as the Mets put up four runs in the inning to go ahead 10-6. They went on to a 10-7 win. 

Jones rapped out three hits & scored three runs in the 12-inning marathon as the Mets evened up the Series heading back to New York.


 In Game #3 Jones caught a touch of the flu & was seen throwing up

in the outfield next to Don Hahn on national television. He played in the game going 0-5 in the extra inning loss. 

In Game #4, Cleon recovered to go 1-3 with a walk in the 6-1 Met win, tying the Series back up at two games each. Jon Matlack put in another outstanding performance on the mound & Rusty Saub led the offense with a HR & five RBIs.

In Game #5 at Shea Stadium Jones led off the 2nd inning with a double off Vida Blue. He then scored on John Milner’s base hit with one of the two Met runs on the night. 

Jerry Koosman & Tug McGraw combined for a three-hit shutout as the Mets went up three games to two, needing one more win for another championship.

Trivia: Jones is pictured scoring in a 1974 Topps baseball card of that game.

But back in Oakland, the Mets dream ended as they lost the next two games. Jones went hitless in both games as the A’s pitching shut down him & the Mets taking the seven Series four games to three. The Mets had an incredible ride but fell short of another miracle amazing season in the end by one game.

'73 World Series Stats: In the World Series Cleon led the Mets with five runs scored. He hit .286 going (8 -28) with two doubles, a HR & one RBI. He drew four walks, struck out twice posted a .394 on base % & .858 OPS.

'73 Post Season Stats: In the 1973 Post Season he hit .292 (14-48) with a HR 4 doubles 8 runs scored & 4 RBIs. He struck out six times, drew six walks posted a .382 on base % & .819 OPS.

After the Pennant: After a rain out on April 9th, the Mets raised their NL Pennant flag at Shea Stadium on April 10th. They defeated the Cardinals 3-2 with Jones going 1-3 with a walk.

The reigning NL Champs started the year 8-13, Cleon had a good start finishing April with a .318 batting average. But as for power he didn't hit his first HR until May 11th in a 6-3 win at Wrigley Field. 

On May 13th, he hit a three-run HR off the Cardinals Bob Gibson in St. Louis, leading the Mets to a 5-3 win. 

On May 25th, his 1st inning, two run HR off the Pirates Doc Ellis in Pittsburgh led the Mets to a 4-3 win.

On June 6th he singled in the home 7th, tying up the game against the Cincinnati Reds. The Mets went on to another ne run victory, when John Milner homered off Pedro Borbon in the 8th.

On June 26th his top of the 12th inning base hit scored Milner in what was the game winning run against the Chicago Cubs. Three days later he hit a HR & drove in three runs in the Mets 4-0 win over the Cardinals at Shea.

Jones may have slowed up a bit on the bases paths at age 32, but still hit consistently, adding an eleven-game hit streak to finish June & enter into July. He hit HRs in each of the first two games of July, leading to Mets wins in a three of four-game series win of the Phils.

Multi- Four RBI Game: In the first game of a Shea Stadum, Fourth of July double header split with the Phillies, Jones had a season high four RBI game. In the 1st inning, he collected an RBI single off Ron Schueler. In the 3rd inning, he cleared the bases with a base loaded double off Ron Schuler. Cleon was thrown out a third trying to stretch it to a triple. The Mets went on to a 5-3 win. 

After playing in 84 games of the first half of the season, after the All-Star break, he played in just 40 games. Once again, he was slowed down due to injuries. 

On July 30th in a double header split at Shea with the Pirates, Cleon came to bat in the bottom of the 8th with the score tied at three. With one on & one out he doubled off Bruce Kison bringing in Jerry Grote in what was the games winning run. 

In the month of July, he hit four HRs & drove in 17 runs.

On August 3rd in Montreal, he had a pair of RBI singles leading the Mets & Jon Matlack to a 3-0 shut out.

 

Matlack was just limited to 12 games in September. The reigning NL Champs were unable to defend their title having a miserable 71-91 season finishing 5th.

Jones was still one of the clubs' top hitters, leading the team in doubles (24) coming in second in batting to Eddie Kranepool (.282). He was third on the club in RBIs (60) hits (130) & HRs (tied with Wayne Garrett with 13). He struck out 79 times with 38 walks posting a .342 on base % & .763 OPS. 

In the outfield his .977% was fourth among left fielders & he also made eight assists. It turned out to be his last season as a full-time player.

1975 Drama & Dismissal: In the 1974/1975 off season the club made some moves to try to improve run production. They acquired slugger Dave Kingman from the Giants. Kingman would set a club record hitting 36 HRs that season. They also acquired Del Unser & catcher John Stearns from Philadelphia in the Tug McGraw trade. Unser became the everyday centerfielder in 1975 batting .294 & Stearns was the Mets main catcher in the 1980's.

They also got another outfielder; the speedy Gene Clines from Pittsburgh, who he hit just .227. 

Another big name to arrive at Shea was veteran Joe Torre. Torre a native New Yorker was at the twilight of his career & batted just .247 with six HRs.

Spring Training 1975: There were a bunch of players now fighting for outfield & first base spots on the club. Ten-year veteran outfielder, Cleon Jones was there as well assuming the left field job was still his. But Jones injured his knee.

At the time the Mets were holding their Spring Training in St. Petersburg. Jones stayed in Florida to rehab the knee as the team went North for the start of the '75 season. 

On May 6th St. Petersburg Police, found Cleon Jones with a young woman, asleep in a van. News reports at the time say the two were both sleeping in the nude. 

At first Jones told the police he was a laborer who worked at the Mets Spring Training complex. But he later admitted the truth, that he was Cleon Jones the baseball player. 

Some reports say the woman was still a teenager, but the St. Petersburg newspaper of the time says she was 21 years old. The woman, named Sharon Ann was an unemployed waitress; she was charged with indecent exposure, possession of marijuana and possession of two marijuana pipes.

Jones was 32 at the time, and still married. He too was charged for indecent exposure but was eventually released on his own recognizance. He was fined a record sum at that time of $2000 by the ball club. 

The Mets organization was upset at the bad press & wanted the matter addressed to the media. To clear the issue up, Mets C.E.O.- M. Donald Grant had Jones publicly apologize in a press conference with his wife Angela at his side.

Quotes- Cleon Jones: "I have promised the management that if they permit me to rejoin the team where I can regain the confidence of everyone & the support of my family, no one will regret having done so." It was the beginning of the end for Jones. 

Looking back this situation it certainly should have been handled better & it was blown way out of proportion. But this also had to do with the period in history it occurred. But Jones had also earned a shaky reputation on a more than a few occasions.

This drama also happened under M. Donald Grants reign after Mrs. Joan Payson had passed away. She certainly would not have allowed things to get this out of hand. Over the next two years Grant would ruin the team & it would take years to recover. 

Jones was off the DL & back with the club by the end of May. On May 27th he same in as a pinch hitter & singled off Dodges pitcher; Burt Hooton in a 10-4 Mets Loss.

On May 31st, he got his first start & went 3-3 with a double & RBI in a Mets 7-2 win. In June he got just eight starts in the outfield, he was batting .282 but had driven in just two runs since his return & had hit no HRs. 

Manager Yogi Berra claimed, Jones had been late for work outs numerous times, but he overlooked it.

On June 18th, in a game against the Atlanta Braves at Shea Stadium, Jones was sent in to pinch hit in the 8th inning. Manager, Yogi Berra then told him to play left field for the 9th inning. Jones refused to go, saying he still had to wrap his knee up. He had made the second out of the inning & still had not wrapped his knee. He shouted, "get someone else out there". 

The two got into a shouting match and Jones stormed off into the club house. On his way he threw his glove and knocked down a towel rack. Berra was furious. 

The usually lax manager wouldn’t let the situation die; he demanded the organization support him to discipline Jones. By July, Cleon was upset about his lack of playing time & was batting just .240.

Quotes- Yogi Berra: “It was the most embarrassing thing that’s ever happened to me as manager. I had to change my whole line up around because of him”. 

He told the club; it was either him or Jones. M. Donald Grant tried to convince Berra otherwise but to no avail, as Yogi stood his ground. The club waited four days then suspended Jones for four days.  They attempted to trade him, but he vetoed an original deal going to Chicago. Then on July 27th, the Mets gave Cleon Jones his unconditional release. 

Quotes- Mets GM Joe McDonald: "Having exhausted all avenues in attempting to reconcile the problem, we are offering Cleon Jones his unconditional release. We see nothing to be gained in going to arbitration proceedings. Regardless of the result, the problem would not be resolved."

Quotes- Yogi Berra: "I'm glad it's over. I'm relieved. I feel I did the right thing. I feel the way Joe
does, I wish Cleon all the luck in the world. He's got talent if he wants to play."

Berra dismissed race being an issue, saying he would do the same thing with any player. Marvin Miller, head of the players Union, filed a grievance against the Mets ball club. 

After a ten-year Mets career, Cleon Jones was gone, leaving behind many club records. 

Within two weeks the Mets' upper management fired Yogi Berra, replacing him with coach Roy McMillan. 

It was agreed at the time it was only for the rest of the season as McMillan did not want the job permanently. 

On August 9th the Mets were 58-54 in fourth place seven 1/2 games back. They finished the year at 82-80 in third place.

Post Mets Career: On April 3rd, 1976, Cleon Jones signed a deal with the Chicago White Sox. He would appear in just 12 games with them, batting .200 (8-40) with three RBIs. On May 3rd he was released & eventually retired at age 33.

Mets Legacy: Jones may have not been the best player in Mets history, but he is certainly an important one. He was voted to the Mets All Time Team as the clubs left fielder. An honor that Jones said meant a lot to him. He was ranked as one of the club's top fifty players.

Cleon’s legacy still lives beyond making the final catch in the 1969 Series as he ranks high on top of most Mets all-time records:

Mets All Time Leaderboard: Cleon is sixth all time in Mets games played (1201). He is fourth on the all-time Mets list in hits (1118) triples (33) sac flies (41) & hit by pitches (39).

He is also fifth in at bats (4223). Jones ranks seventh in runs scored (563). Jones is eighth in RBIs (521) & total bases (1715).

He ranks ninth in extra base hits (308). Jones is tenth in doubles (182). 

Cleon is thirteenth in walks (335) fourteenth in stolen bases (91) & fifteenth in HRs (93) on the Mets All-time list. 

Jones played on two Mets World Series teams, winning a Championship in the Amazing Mets 1969 Season.

Tommie Age's Best Man: Cleon was best man for Tommie Agee at his 1985 wedding. He also spoke at the 2002 induction of Tommie Agee into the Mets Hall of Fame. 

Cleon said it was the easiest thing he ever had to do because he lived the story book life with Agee. They were both inspirations to each other and were more like brothers than friends.

Drama after baseball: Cleon had some troubles in 1985, when he pleaded guilty to assaulting a Ms. Taylor (27) & her uncle (49) in a shooting incident, in Mobile. A judge told Cleon he was letting him off easy, in handing him a 10-year suspended sentence & five-year probation to the pleas of first-degree assault.

Honors: In 1991 Jones was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 1991 as its sixth member.  

He is also a member of the Mobile Alabama Hall of Fame.

Everybody Loves Raymond: Jones appeared with other members of the '69 Mets on Everybody Loves Raymond's TV show in 1999. 

In the film Men in Black three he is mentioned & depicted catching the fly ball of final out of the 1969 World Series.

Amazing Mets Reunions: In 2008 Cleon was on hand for the closing ceremonies of Shea Stadium.

In 2009 he was on hand for the 1969 Mets 40th Anniversary reunion at Citi Field. In 2019 he was on hand for the 50th Anniversary as well.

Cleon has appeared at many Mets fantasy camps & baseball card memorabilia events thru the years as well.

2015 World Series: In 2015 he joined Darryl Strawberry & Mookie Wilson in throwing out ceremonial first pitches before Game #5 at Citi Field.

In 2019 Cleon was on hand with Jerry Koosman, Ron Swoboda & Tom Seaver's daughters in a ceremony outside Citi Field where the street was named Seaver Way in honor of the great Mets Hall of Famer Tom Seaver.

Old Timers Day & Willie Mays #24 Retirement: In 2022 Cleon was on hand for the Mets Old Timers Day & Willie Mays uniform #24 retirement. Jones along with Jon Matlack, Ed Kranepool & Felix Millan represented the 1973 NL Champions.

In 2024 he was on hand at Citi Field with Willie Mays' son, Michael Mays & other family members honoring Willie after his passing earlier that week. Michael Mays said Cleon Jones had been a mentor to him.

Family: Cleon & his wife Angela were high school sweethearts. They have been married since Jones played in the minor leagues. Together they have two children Anja & Cleon Jr.

Trivia: Cleon's wife Angela is a cousin to Chicago Cubs Hall of Famer Billy Williams. 

In more recent times, Cleon & Angela help refurbish seniors' homes in their hometown of Mobile, Alabama in the Africatown neighborhood.

Coaching & Instructing: Things got better for Cleon; he became the baseball coach at Bishop State Community College in Mobile, Alabama for 11 years.

In 1994 he also coached women's softball at Bishop State compiling a 46-16 record. "Baseball is my life and I welcome this challenge." he said when he took the role on. 

He has also served as a Mets minor league roving batting instructor for a time.

Jones ran a fast-food business at one time as well. Cleon has always been a community helper in Mobile for kids as well as the elderly.

Author: He is the author of two books "The Life Story of the One & Only Cleon Jones " in the 1970's & "Coming Home" released in August 2022.