Forgotten Legends: Vincent Edward ‘Bo’ Jackson (Royals 1986-1990, White Sox 1991,1993, Angels 1994)
May 9, 2008“First of all, I really never imagined myself being a professional athlete.” – Bo Jackson
Looking at the man to the left that is hard to believe. Bo Jackson was one of the best athletes that I have ever seen. Jackson played in the Major Leagues less than ten years, but his mark will forever be on the sport. His promising career was cut short by a hip injury suffered while playing his “hobby” sport of professional football. If not for that injury who knows what could have happened?
Bo was drafted by the Royals and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL in 1986. He chose baseball and started playing for the Memphis Chicks in the Royals farm system. He was called up at the end of the year, and was a star right away. Bo was known for running up walls after a catch, breaking his bat over his knee or head, and of course the catch phrase “Bo Knows.” In addition to his bat Bo also had a rocket arm. He once threw out Harold Reynolds at home from the right field warning track flat footed. The throw quickly became legend.
Bo’s best baseball season probably came in 1989. He hit .256 with 32 home runs and 105 RBI’s. He was elected to his first and only All-Star game that year as well. In his first All-Star at bat he hit a 448 foot home run. He won the MVP of the 1989 All-Star game for his efforts. In 1990 he hit 28 home runs and raised his average to .272.
He won the Comeback Player of the Year Award in 1993 after coming back from his football injury. In his first at bat after hip replacement surgery he hit a home run for the White Sox. It was an amazing comeback just to get back to the Major Leagues, but Bo was not the same. His hip was hindering him, and he retired after the 1994 season.
Bo Jackson was honored by the White Sox in 2005 when he threw out the first pitch in game 2 of the World Series. He was a great athlete that could probably have gone pro in any sport. He chose to play two at the professional level. That choice might have cost him a shot at the Hall of Fame. His ability though formed a legend that will live on through generations. Not many people could win the Heisman Trophy as well be selected to play in two major sports All-Star games in the same season.
See Jackson’s career statistics at baseball-reference.com.
Written by Dave at >Confessions of a Sports Junkie.
You can see that throw at the 3:00 mark of http://youtube.com/watch?v=TLGADNEeb50
It was a base hit off the wall to left (not to right), with Reynolds running from first on the pitch. Bo took the rebound and fired home, flat footed, and the ball made it to the catcher in the air. Mythical stuff.
Thanks for the article on Bo, he’s one of my favorite athletes as well.
Jackson’s “comeback home run” (April 9 1993) is still legendary in Chicago sports.
Still, my best memories of Bo are from his days with the Royals & Raiders.
What a tremendous talent.
Thanks for both of your comments. That link was great as well. I should have thought to check youtube for a collage like that before I wrote the piece. He was fun to watch for sure. You are right about his days with the Royals and the Raiders, but I will also remember him with the Sox as well. Without injuries I can only imagine what would have happened.
1990 was the year that Bo really clicked for me. I remember him defying gravity on an outfield wall to make a catch. He walked up and down the wall just like Spider-Man.