Mariners notebook: James Jones ready to contribute after promotion

Outfielder James Jones is back with the Mariners after spending all of 2015 so far with Tacoma. How much will he play?

BY SHANNON DRAYER

Jun 15, 2015, 6:49 PM Updated: Jun 16, 2015, 1:23 pm

Outfielder James Jones will be used mostly in a reserve role with the Mariners after being called up. (AP)

(AP)

SAN FRANCISCO – As expected, James Jones has joined the Mariners. The outfielder has been recalled from Triple-A Tacoma to take the place of reliever Danny Farquhar, who was officially optioned back to Tacoma earlier Monday.

Jones has hit .264 (46 for 174) with 29 runs, six doubles, four triples, one home run, 13 RBIs and 15 stolen bases in 48 games with the Rainiers. His bat has heated up a bit recently as he has hit .342 in the month of June.

Triple-A numbers rarely transfer straight to the big leagues, but Jones brings much more, according to manager Lloyd McClendon.

“Jones brings speed, defense in the outfield, hopefully a spark in a different way for us,” McClendon said. “He’s capable of stealing bases when we need them, when they know he’s going. Hopefully it pays off for us. We’ll see.”

The time he spent last year in the big leagues was a valuable experience for Jones. It forced him to take a closer look at his game and make adjustments starting last offseason. He realized that he needed to get on base more and that he may have been making that tougher than he needed to.

“I realized most of the time I was too picky at pitches that I could have put in play and used my legs,” he explained. “I’ve opened up my zone in the middle of the plate rather than favoring one of the sides or guessing. I know my hand speed is good enough to get there. It’s more simple now. My mind is free, I know how to stay more aggressive in the zone and let the pitchers come to me.”

Jones is not in Monday’s lineup but McClendon said he could get a start Tuesday. How many starts he receives remains to be seen, but McClendon believes he is a player that can be comfortable in a bench role despite the fact he had been starting in Tacoma.

The transition is not always easy.

“I think he handled it pretty good last year,” McClendon said. “I think he will be a more relaxed player this time around in a lot of different ways and probably help us even more. Let’s hope so.”

Lineup!

Logan Morrison, 1B
Austin Jackson, CF
Robinson Cano, 2B
Nelson Cruz, RF
Kyle Seager, 3B
Seth Smith, LF
Brad Miller, SS
Mike Zunino, C
Taijuan Walker, RHP

Notes

• Mark Trumbo’s back is feeling better today. A determination on whether he could be available to pinch hit tonight was to be made after batting practice.

• Hisashi Iwakuma threw a simulated game at Safeco Field earlier today and all went well. He is scheduled to make his first rehab start on Saturday for Everett. He will throw 40-50 pitches.

• James Paxton is expected to be cleared to start throwing late next week.