J.J. Jurries

James Lee Jurries

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 195-205 lb.
• School Tulane University
• High School Brazoswood High School

• Born April 13, 1979 in Freeport, TX USA

BR minors page

Biographical Information

J.J. Jurries played five years in the minors. A 4-time All-Conference infielder in college, he had two good years at AAA but never got a shot at the major leagues.

Amateur star

Jurries was picked in the 34th round of the 1998 amateur draft by the Cleveland Indians but opted for college. He hit .367/.440/.698 as a freshman for Tulane. He was named to the Baseball America Freshman All-American team at second base and beat out Ryan Howard, Mark Teixeira and other future big leaguers for the Baseball America Freshman of the Year Award. He tied Matt Cepicky for 5th in NCAA Division I with 90 runs. He led Conference USA in runs (5 ahead of Kevin Youkilis) and total bases, was second in hits and RBI, tied for third in home runs, was fourth in slugging percentage and finished eighth in batting average. In 2000, Jurries hit .338 with 17 steals and a .573 slugging percentage. He was again an All-Conference USA pick on the infield. He struggled in the Cape Cod League, hitting .207/~.326/.329 for the Falmouth Commodores. In 2001, J.J. moved to first base and hit .324/?/.514 while battling a wrist injury. He again was All-Conference. Tulane finished fifth in NCAA Division I. Returning for his senior season, Jurries put on a show, leading Conference USA in runs (77), home runs (20) and RBI (74). He stole 30 bases, two behind leader Michael Bourn, and hit .400 to finish third. He slugged .750. He was All-Conference for the 4th straight year and won Conference USA Player of the Year honors. He tied for 13th in NCAA Division I in runs (77) and tied for 17th in home runs. Baseball America named him as the third-team All-American first baseman. He was chosen by the Atlanta Braves in the 6th round of the 2002 amateur draft. He was signed by scout Don Thomas and made his pro debut that summer.

Professional Career

After 4 games with the 2002 Danville Braves (.333/.412/.600), Jurries finished the year with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, hitting .290/.352/.460. In 2003, J.J. batted .284/.354/.434 with the Greenville Braves and his 35 doubles tied Andy Marte for the most in the Braves chain. Jurries split 2004 between Greenville (.306/.359/.653 in 18 games) and the Richmond Braves (.267/.336/.487 in 102 games). His 25 home runs led the Atlanta system that year.

J.J. bounced around the Richmond field in 2005, playing first base, the outfield and DH. He batted .284/.357/.537 with 21 homers. He tied Scott Thorman for the most home runs by a Braves farmhand and led Richmond in slugging but did not get called up; Andy LaRoche and Julio Franco were splitting first base in Atlanta. Jurries was suspended that year for 15 games for a positive steroid test. He admitted to taking steroids. Jurries hit .429 with Atlanta in spring training in 2006, dominating the Grapefruit League, but returned to Richmond. There, he battled a knee injury (sidelining him for part of April and all of May) and never got going, only hitting .205/.295/.326 with 106 strikeouts in 307 AB. He was released by Atlanta after the season.

Jurries batted .269/.340/.460 in the minor leagues overall.

He was later an assistant coach at Tulane and the University of New Orleans.

Sources:

• 1999-2007 Baseball Almanacs
• 2007 Braves Media Guide
• Tulane bio
• One of several reports on Jurries' steroid use
• News of Jurries' release
• Cape Cod League