Jones happy to get new look with 51s

Most professional baseball players would love to wear the pinstripes of the New York Yankees. But 51s slugger Mitch Jones was glad when he got released by the Bronx Bombers at the end of last season.

"I was happy to get out of there and get some new looks," said Jones, who signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers in December after seven seasons in New York's farm system. "I don't really have hard feelings toward the Yankees, but I'm glad to get an opportunity with someone else.

"I never really got an opportunity at the big league level, and I wasn't going to get considerable playing time there."

Jones, a four-time minor league All-Star who hit 48 home runs and had 157 RBIs for Triple-A Columbus the last two seasons, was called up to the Yankees last May 20 but was sent down the next day without seeing any action.

"When (Gary) Sheffield and (Hideki) Matsui got hurt, I went up there. Then they signed (Bobby) Abreu," Jones said. "That's kind of how they do it over there. It's tough to break through with those guys. I didn't get an at-bat, and that's the way it would've been if I had stayed there longer.

"It was a good experience and I can say I got to the big leagues, but hopefully I've got a lot more ahead of me. I don't want to just end like that."

Jones, who was drafted by the Yankees in the seventh round in 2000, has started strong for the 51s, leading Las Vegas with six home runs, seven doubles and 20 RBIs.

The Utah native went 0-for-3 Tuesday night in the 51s' 5-2 loss to Sacramento at Cashman Field, and he's hitting .266 after finishing last season with a .234 average.

Jones, 29, also is leading Las Vegas with 25 strikeouts in 79 at-bats, though, a trend that has hampered his progress throughout his career.

Jones has 110 homers and 345 RBIs the last four years -- winning the Double-A Home Run Derby in 2004 and the Triple-A Home Run Derby in 2005 -- but he also fanned 602 times in that span.

A career .245 hitter, Jones had the second-highest strikeout percentage (32.9) in the International League last season.

"Mitch has got power, there's no doubt about it, but he's had some high strikeout numbers in the past, and we'd like him to cut down on those," 51s manager Lorenzo Bundy said. "We think he can be a better hitter. The more contact he can make, the more chances he'll get to drive in runs."

Bundy said Jones needs to be more selective at the plate.

"A lot of times with strikeouts, some guys have a hole in their swing and some guys swing at bad pitches. From what I've seen with Mitch Jones so far this year, he swings at bad pitches," Bundy said. "If we can keep him in the strike zone, those strikeouts should go down."

Jones, who splits time between first base and the outfield, didn't seem concerned with his strikeouts.

"I'm a guy that's going to strike out, but I'm also going to put up numbers," he said. "People ask me about my strikeouts, but that's something I honestly don't spend too much time thinking about. There are a lot of guys in the big leagues making a lot of money and winning MVPs that strike out a lot."