A swift outfielder who showed great promise, Stone never developed as the Phillies hoped. Recalled from Portland in late 1984, he hit .362 and stole 27 bases in 51 games with the Phillies, but succeeding seasons featured more strikeouts than stolen bases, and long stints at the Triple-A level. He was traded to Baltimore in 1988, but spent most of the season with the Rochester Red Wings.
(SG/GL)
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FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY
»August 29, 1981: Phillies farmhand Jeff Stone steals his 121st base of the season for Spartanburg (South Atlantic League), breaking the all-time professional record set last season by Alan Wiggins. Stone will finish the season with 122 SBs, a record that will not last through 1982.
»August 21, 1983: Class A outfielders Vince Coleman (Macon, South Atlantic League) and Donnell Nixon (Bakersfield, California League) each break Rickey Henderson's single-season record by stealing their 131st bases of the season. Coleman will finish the season with minor-league record 145 stolen bases, despite having missed 31 games with a broken hand. Nixon will tally 144. Jeff Stone (South Atlantic League) will swipe 123 while Len Dykstra will set a Class A Carolina League record with 105 thefts.
»August 21, 2000:
Potomac's Esix Snead breaks Len Dykstra's Carolina League record of 105 steals by swiping his 106th. Snead has a batting average of .242 and OBA of .338. It's the 10th time in the last 20 years that a minor-leaguer has stolen 100 or more bases in a season. According to Howe Sports data, the eight thieves who stole 100 or more bases in the minors were :Vince Coleman, Macon (South Atlantic), 1983—145: Donell Nixon, Bakersfield (California), 1983—144: Jeff Stone, Spartanburg (South Atlantic), 1983—123: Alan Wiggins, Lodi (California), 1980—120: Marcus Lawton, Columbia (South Atlantic), 1985—111: Snead: Dykstra, Lynchburg (Carolina), 1983—105: Donell Nixon, Chattanooga (Southern), 1984—102: Vince Coleman, Louisville (American Assoc.), 1983— 101: Albert Hall, Durham (Carolina), 1980—100.
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