Former Astros Closer Doug Jones Passes Away at 64

Former Astros’ closer Doug Jones passed away on Monday, Nov. 22 from complications with COVID-19.

On Monday, former Houston Astros‘ closer Doug Jones passed away from complications with COVID-19, Greg Swindell announced. Swindell, a former Major League Baseball player as well, went to Twitter to report the news that his friend had passed.

Jones was 64-years-old and had been away from playing in MLB since 2000, when he retired at 43-years-old (oldest age of any player that season). The right-hander had a 16-year MLB career that spanned over three decades with seven teams.

After making his debut in 1982 with the Milwaukee Brewers, Jones didn’t make it back to the Major Leagues until 1986 with the Cleveland Indians. His longest tenure with a ball club was also with the Indians from 1986 to 1991 (seven seasons), where Jones wracked in three of his five All-Star selections.

Jones found a home with the Houston Astros soon after departing from Cleveland, where he played two seasons (1992-93). The closer was selected to the 1992 at 35-years-old, a season where he led MLB in games finished (70). Jones led MLB in games finished a second time (73) in ’97 at 40-years-old.

While never reaching the postseason with the Astros, Jones did with the Oakland A’s and Indians, falling short of the ’98 World Series. At the time of his retirement in 2000, Jones was 12th all-time in major-league saves with 303 and had an immaculate inning under his belt that he pitched in September of 1997.

The five-time All-Star was still active in baseball after his retirement, coaching high school baseball. Jones took Pusch Ridge Christian Academy to the Arizona 2A High School Championship in 2009, while later being named the pitching coach for the Boise Hawks, a minor-league affiliate of the Colorado Rockies in 2015.