Jerome Walton

Jerome Walton Autograph

Jerome Walton Bio

Cubs Video

At one point, Jerome Walton was the next great Cubs outfielder. Born in 1965 in Newnan, Georgia, Walton was drafted in the second round by the Cubs out of Newnan High School.

Walton shot up through the Cubs' farm system. He posted a .795 OPS in Rookie ball in 1986, a .926 OPS in A-ball the following year, and an .822 OPS in Double-A Pittsfield in 1988. This rapid path through the minors caused the Cubs to open the 1989 season with Walton on the roster as their everyday starting centerfielder. Walton, known for his speed and toolsy nature, did not disappoint. After an early acclimation period when he saw his batting average drop under .250 in April, Walton started heating up in July and saw his batting average flirt with the .300 mark for much of the second half of the season.

Fans, quickly becoming enamored of the young outfielder, started the "Jerome-O-Meter", which tracked his batting average as he looked to hit over .300 in his rookie campaign. Ultimately, Walton fell just short of .300, finishing the 1989 season with a .293 average. Still, this was enough for him to cruise to the NL Rookie of the Year award, finishing ahead of his teammate Dwight Smith. Walton was the first Cub to win Rookie of the Year since 1962.

Unfortunately, this was the peak of Walton's career. He struggled badly in the 1990 season, posting an 83 OPS+ in only 101 games played. He continued his downward slide in the following two seasons, posting a 67 and 25 OPS+, respectively. Following the 1992 season, Walton became a free agent and left Wrigley for the California Angels.

Walton bounced around baseball for a few more years, playing in Cincinnati, Baltimore, Atlanta, and Tampa Bay. His final MLB season was 1998. In the end, he finished with a 92 OPS+ and 3.7 WAR in 1,761 plate appearances.

Notable Events & Trivia

Won the National League Rookie of the Year Award in 1989

Baseball-Reference

Jerome Walton Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More | Baseball-Reference.com

Check out the latest Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More of Jerome Walton. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, draft status, bats, throws, school and more on Baseball-reference.com
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Wikipedia

Jerome Walton - Wikipedia

Jerome O'Terrell Walton (born July 8, 1965) is an American former Major League Baseball center fielder who played for the Chicago Cubs, California Angels, Cincinnati Reds, Atlanta Braves, Baltimore Orioles, and Tampa Bay Devil Rays, between 1989 and 1998.[1] He batted and threw right-handed. Walton was born in Newnan, Georgia.

Jerome Walton Statistics

Standard Batting Table
Season	Age	Team	Lg	WAR	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+	rOBA	Rbat+	TB	GIDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB	Pos	Awards
1989	23	CHC	NL	1.9	116	515	475	64	139	23	3	5	46	24	7	27	77	.293	.335	.385	.721	100	.346	104	183	6	6	2	5	1	*8/H	MVP-13,ROY-1
1990	24	CHC	NL	-0.9	101	450	392	63	103	16	2	2	21	14	7	50	70	.263	.350	.329	.680	83	.327	88	129	4	4	1	2	1	8/H
1991	25	CHC	NL	1.3	123	298	270	42	59	13	1	5	17	7	3	19	55	.219	.275	.330	.604	67	.296	70	89	7	3	3	3	0	8H/9
1992	26	CHC	NL	-0.7	30	69	55	7	7	0	1	0	1	1	2	9	13	.127	.273	.164	.436	25	.243	40	9	1	2	3	0	0	7H/89
1993	27	CAL	AL	0.0	5	3	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	2	.000	.333	.000	.333	-2	.324	28	0	0	0	0	0	0	/DH7
1994	28	CIN	NL	-0.3	46	73	68	10	21	4	0	1	9	1	3	4	12	.309	.347	.412	.759	98	.320	94	28	2	0	1	0	0	H7/398
1995	29	CIN	NL	1.4	102	188	162	32	47	12	1	8	22	10	7	17	25	.290	.368	.525	.892	134	.386	135	85	0	4	3	2	0	87H/93
1996	30	ATL	NL	0.6	37	55	47	9	16	5	0	1	4	0	0	5	10	.340	.389	.511	.900	131	.387	125	24	1	0	1	2	0	7H/98
1997	31	BAL	AL	0.3	26	74	68	8	20	1	0	3	9	0	0	4	10	.294	.333	.441	.775	103	.366	117	30	3	0	2	0	0	9/7H38D
1998	32	TBD	AL	0.0	12	36	34	4	11	3	0	0	3	0	0	2	6	.324	.361	.412	.773	100	.345	96	14	1	0	0	0	0	/H79D
10 Yrs				3.7	598	1761	1573	241	423	77	8	25	132	58	29	138	280	.269	.333	.376	.708	92	.334	96	591	25	19	16	14	2	8H793/D
162 Game Avg				1.0	162	477	426	65	115	21	2	7	36	16	8	37	76	.269	.333	.376	.708	92	.334	96	160	7	5	4	4	1

CHC (4 Yrs)				1.7	370	1332	1192	176	308	52	7	12	85	46	19	105	215	.258	.324	.344	.668	83	.323	87	410	18	15	9	10	2	8H7/9
CIN (2 Yrs)				1.2	148	261	230	42	68	16	1	9	31	11	10	21	37	.296	.362	.491	.853	123	.367	123	113	2	4	4	2	0	8H793
ATL (1 Yr)				0.6	37	55	47	9	16	5	0	1	4	0	0	5	10	.340	.389	.511	.900	131	.387	125	24	1	0	1	2	0	7H/98
BAL (1 Yr)				0.3	26	74	68	8	20	1	0	3	9	0	0	4	10	.294	.333	.441	.775	103	.366	117	30	3	0	2	0	0	9/7H38D
TBD (1 Yr)				0.0	12	36	34	4	11	3	0	0	3	0	0	2	6	.324	.361	.412	.773	100	.345	96	14	1	0	0	0	0	/H79D
CAL (1 Yr)				0.0	5	3	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	2	.000	.333	.000	.333	-2	.324	28	0	0	0	0	0	0	/DH7

NL (7 Yrs)				3.4	555	1648	1469	227	392	73	8	22	120	57	29	131	262	.267	.332	.372	.704	91	.332	95	547	21	19	14	14	2	8H793
AL (3 Yrs)				0.3	43	113	104	14	31	4	0	3	12	1	0	7	18	.298	.342	.423	.765	100	.358	108	44	4	0	2	0	0	H97/D38