By Bill Ballew
Baseball America
September 7 - 20, 2009

[Editor's note: Mycal Jones played for the Herndon Braves in 2008.]

ATLANTA, Ga. --- It didn't take Mycal Jones long to make a name for himself in the Braves organization.

On June 29, Rookie-level Danville was leading 5-2 in the eighth inning of its home opener. With runners on first and second, Kingsport's Joseph Bonfe lined a shot to the right of Jones at shortstop. To the baserunners' surprise, Jones caught the ball, beat Alonzo Harris to second base, and then nabbed John Semel at first for just the second triple play in franchise history.

''It was a trivia question the next night at the ballpark, that Rafael Furcal was the only other player to turn a triple play with Danville,'' Jones said. ''It was fun and exciting, but really was a case of being in the right place at the right time.''

Jones, Atlanta's fourth-round pick in June, signed shortly after the draft for a reported $252,000. A product of Miami-Dade CC, via North Florida, Jones impressed scouts with his plus speed, potent bat and smooth actions at short. He was hitting .276/.357/.469 in 192 at-bats with Danville, led the Appalachian League with 21 extra-base hits and was tied for the league lead with 40 runs. He was 16-for-17 in stolen base attempts while adding four homers and 24 RBIs.

Undrafted as a 145-pound infielder out of high school, Jones gained 30 pounds as a freshman while dedicating himself in the weight room. Ruled academically ineligible his second season, he transferred to Miami-Dade and was named conference player of the year for the Sharks, who finished the 2009 campaign ranked sixth in the nation among junior colleges.

At 22, Jones is older than most newcomers in the Appy League, but the Braves believe he has the polished tools and overall athleticism to move rapidly. Helping his cause is the fact that Jones plays a position that isn't considered one of the organization's deepest.

''I really don't pay attention to who's ahead of me or anything like that,'' Jones said. ''I love what I'm doing and I get to do it every day. I've been playing baseball since I was 4 (years old), so this really is a dream come true.''

Copyright 2009, Baseball America.