game against the Giants, Jones drove in 3 runs, which gave him his 1000th career RBI. On September 26, in a game against the New York Mets, Jones hit his 40th home run of the season. He became the first hitter in Atlanta's history to have consecutive seasons of at least 40 homers. Jones finished the 2006 season with 41 home runs and 129 RBIs. Jones also became more selective at the plate (82 walks, as compared to 64 the prior season), which helped him score 107 runs during 2006, an increase of 12 over the prior year and his most in a single season since 2000. He won his ninth consecutive Gold Glove award. The Braves finished with a 79–83 record and missed the postseason for the first time since 1990. 2007 Coming into the last year of his contract with the Braves, many fans and sports analysts alike felt that 2007 would be his last year as a Brave, mostly because of his potential value on the market that the Braves would not be able to afford. Jones, however, had an unexpectedly poor start to the season, striking out 51 times in 41 games and carrying a batting average in the low .200s for the majority of April and May. On April 30, Jones hit a three-run walk-off home run against the Philadelphia Phillies. On May 28, Jones hit his 350th career homer off Chris Capuano. After the All-Star break, Jones continued to have productive power numbers; however, his batting average remained poor. He was honored with a Fielding Bible Award as the best fielding center fielder in MLB. Jones finished the 2007 season with 26 home runs and 94 RBIs. On the downside, Jones hit only .222 and struck out 138 times. On October 2, the Braves announced they would not be bringing Jones back for the 2008 season. Los Angeles Dodgers (2008) On December 5, 2007, Jones agreed to a two-year deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers, worth $36.2 million. After showing up out of shape and over 20 pounds overweight, he continued to struggle, hitting below .200 for most of the season. Additionally, he had only 10 hits in 116 at-bats with runners in scoring position. Due to his lack of production, Jones was dropped to eighth in the Dodger line-up. This was the first time since 1998 that Jones had hit eighth in any