Adam Jones doesn’t want to hear it from anyone questioning his decision to remain with the Baltimore Orioles.
The O’s did serious house-cleaning leading up to the MLB non-waiver trade deadline, parting ways with nearly every valuable piece. They traded Manny Machado, Jonathan Schoop, Kevin Gausman, Zach Britton, Darren O’Day and Brad Brach. They probably could have dealt Adam Jones too, but Jones prevented that from happening.
Jones has earned 10/5 status, which means he’s played at least 10 years in the majors, the last five coming with the same team. Once a player has achieved that status, they have the right to veto trades. That’s what Jones did at the deadline, which is why he remains a part of the 32-75 Orioles.
Jones was asked about that decision on Tuesday and got defensive. MASN’s Roch Kubatko provided the quotes from Jones, who told critics to keep it to themselves.
Jones on why he didn't approve trade: “When players walked out years ago and walked the picket lines and did all that stuff, they did all that for reasons like right now. I earned this and it’s my decision. I don’t have to explain it to nobody. It’s my decision. Thank you.”
— Roch Kubatko (@masnRoch) August 1, 2018
More Jones (and not in an angry tone): “Well, here’s the thing about society, everyone thinks that they know what’s best for the next person. Now, if someone wants to pay all my bills, trust me, they can tell me what to do. But until then, shut the hell up.” #orioles
— Roch Kubatko (@masnRoch) August 1, 2018
Jones: "There’s the thing. I’m not going around telling other people and dictating other people’s lives. Why do they do that with us? No one’s going to tell me what to do. I earned every single bit of it. People before me fought vigorously to get rights like this." #orioles
— Roch Kubatko (@masnRoch) August 1, 2018
Jones is absolutely right. He earned the right to veto a trade and does not need to explain his decision to anyone.
What will be interesting to see is what Jones decides to do after the season. He will be a free agent and seems to have hinted he’d like to return to the O’s.
