Chipper Jones will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Atlanta Sports Awards on March 5.
Jones, who spent his entire career with the Braves where he won a World Series and was also named National League MVP, will be honored at a ceremony at the Fox Theatre’s Egyptian Ballroom, according to the Atlanta Sports Council. Jones hasn’t returned a message left with his agent. But in a portion of a statement from a press release, he said:
“I never imagined that I would get to play this wonderful game for two decades, especially with just one team. It is extremely gratifying that our club played at the level we did for as long as we did. Our team and our city built some amazing memories over the last 20 years.”
Jones was selected by Atlanta with the first pick in the 1990 draft. As a rookie in 1995 he helped the team defeat Cleveland to win the World Series. That year, he led all rookies in RBI (86) while hitting 23 home runs.
He was named the NL’s Most Valuable Player in 1999 after hitting .319 with 45 home runs, 41 doubles, 25 stolen bases and 110 RBI.
He retired following the 2012 season. For his career, Jones had 468 home runs, 1,623 RBI, 150 stolen bases, and a .303 batting average. He is considered to be one of the greatest third basemen in baseball history and a future Hall-of-Famer.
“Few professional athletes begin and end their careers with the same organization and even fewer have the impact that Chipper Jones has had on the Atlanta Braves and city of Atlanta,” Dan Corso, executive director of the Atlanta Sports Council, said in a statement.
Numerous people associated with the Braves have received the Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by Coca-Cola: player Hank Aaron (2006), previous owner Ted Turner (2009) and former manager Bobby Cox (2011).
