Ruppert Jones
Ruppert Jones is a bench player for California on the NES version of RBI. He is widely regarded as one of the top pinch hitters in all of RBI, only surpassed unanimously by Mark McGwire of the AL All-Stars. Jones is a left handed hitter, sports a ton of power and has respectable speed. It's not a matter of when Ruppert should go on, it's a matter of where he should bat. More recently, he was the answer to a trivia question which gave forum member JerryD a prize package. 1
Bio
- Born March 12, 1957 in Dallas, TX
- Drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 3rd round of the 1973 amateur draft.
- Played in the Big Leagues with Kansas City (1976), Seattle (1977-1979), the New York Yankees (1980), San Diego (1981-1983), Detroit (1984) and California (1985-1987)
- Was the first player taken by Seattle in their expansion draft
- Was the first All-Star in the history of the Seattle Mariners franchise
- Ranks sixth all-time in Mariners history in career triples (20)
- All-Star in 1977 & 1982
- A member of the legendary 1984 Detroit Tigers
- Netted 3 hits for California in the 1986 ALCS
- Named to the 1977 Topps All-Star Rookie Team
RBI Stats
- Left-handed hitter
- .250 Batting Average
- 17 Home Runs
- 891 Power Rating
- 32 Contact Rating
- 128 Speed Rating
Career Stats
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| 1331 | 4415 | 643 | 1103 | 215 | 38 | 147 | 579 | 143 | 534 | 817 | .250 | .330 | .416 | .746 |
Ruppert in RBI
Ruppert really does it all in RBI. He's a huge bat off the bench, sports nearly 900 power and is fast enough to stay out of trouble. His contact rating is terrible, but it rarely affects his ability to go yard or get singles. Jones has enough pop that he has little trouble going yard off a lefty pitcher in straight pitch, a problem of many lefties.
The big debate is where to put Ruppert in the lineup. There is usually a 50/50 split with people who sub Ruppert at leadoff for Gary Pettis compared to others who sub him for Bobby Grich at the six spots. Proponents of the leadoff spot feel that Jones should get as many ABs as possible, while others feel that the #6 spot in the lineup gives him more chances to drive in runs. There is no right spot for Jones, it's a matter of having a strong top of the order versus a strong middle of the order.
Nicknames
- Rupperto
- ROOP!
- RJ
- Rupe
RBI Baseball Cards
