Jerome Walton - 1991

Walton was born July 8, 1965 in Newnan, Georgia and grew up there.  He made his public debut as a baseball player when he was only eight years old as a catcher in little league.  During the next few years he played third base and pitched in babe Ruth League and at Newnan High School. 

Walton also excelled in football and basketball.  He started on the varsity in the tenth grade playing split end, running back and quarterback and doubled on defense as safety.  On the basketball court he played guard and averaged 21 points per game. 

Following high school graduation he signed a scholarship to play baseball at Enterprise State junior College.  As a freshman, Walton hit .190 and played in the outfield for the first time.  Hard work during the off-season paid off as Walton boosted his batting average to .433 as a sophomore and was named All-Division, All-Tournament in the State Tournament in Montgomery and All-Region 22.  He was a key in Enterprise State’s winning the Southern Division Championship with a 15-5 record.  Walton was named the Most Valuable Player for the Southern Division of the Alabama Junior College Conference. 

Drafted in the second round by the Chicago Cubs following the 1986 season, Walton rose through the minor league ranks rapidly.  That year he spent his first season of professional baseball at Wytheville of the Appalachian League (Rookie).  There he finished 10^th in the league with a .288 batting average and was 2^nd in runs scored (48), tied for 3^rd in stolen bases (21), was 4^th in triples (4) and 5^th in hits (66).  Walton was the Appalachian League’s Player of the Month for July and was selected to the league’s postseason all-star team. 

In 1987 Walton was a midseason and postseason all-star selection at Peoria of the Midwest League (A).  He finished the season ranked 2^nd in the league in stolen bases (49) and on-bases percentage (.452), 3^rd in hitting (.335), and 4^th in hits (158).  Adding 11 triples to his record was enough to tie Walton for 2^nd in the league in that department.  He was also 3^rd in runs scored (102) and 4^th in walks (91). 

The 1988 season found Walton playing at Pittsfield of the Eastern League (AA) where he won the league’s batting title with a .331 average, the first Pittsfield player since 1976 to win a batting title.  At the conclusion of that season, Walton was drawing increasing attention as he was tied for 4^th in hits (137), was 2^nd in doubles (26), and on-base percentage (.399) and 4^th in stolen bases (42).  He started in the Eastern League All-Star Game, had a triple and the game winning RBI, and was selected to the league’s postseason All-Star Team.  Walton hit safely in 15 of 16 games from July 15 – July 31 (24-61-.393) with 9 multi-hit games.  During the stretch he scored 13 runs and had 16 RBI’s. 

Over his three minor league seasons, Walton earned a .324 bating average and a record 112 stolen bases. 

Walton was named the starting centerfielder for the Chicago Cubs on the opening day of the 1989 season.  Batting leadoff, he quickly became a mainstay in a lineup that featured such players as Andre Dawson and Ryne Sandberg.  Under manager Don Zimmer, Walton hit .293 including a 30 game hitting streak, the longest in the major leagues that year.  During his rookie campaign he also tallied 64 runs scored, 24 stolen bases, and 46 RBI’s.  He was instrument in the Cubs rise to the top of the National League East.  Posting an almost flawless record, Walton made only 3 errors in 116 games during the 1989 regular season.  In the league championship series, he hit .364. 

On November 8 1989 Jerome Walton was selected as the National League Rookie of the Year.