When Andre Jackson toed the rubber for his MLB debut at Dodger Stadium, one can only imagine what was going through his mind. He had just gotten called up to AAA OKC on July 31, and, less than 3 weeks later, made his MLB debut in one of the most iconic settings in all of sports. In fact, his call-up to AAA had been so recent that he still hadn’t even made a start at Bricktown Ballpark in OKC yet, and his profile picture on the MILB roster still had him wearing a AA Tulsa Drillers hat.
Surprise Start in L.A.
On the night that Jackson made his MLB debut, I was going to attend an OKC game and expected to get to see him pitch with the AAA affiliate. I was especially excited because it was going to be the first time I got to see him pitch in person, but, upon arrival, the skies opened up and the game got rained out. I assumed that his start would be pushed back to the next day and that I would have to wait to see him until then, but, to my amazement, when I turned on the Dodgers game later that night, there he stood, on the mound at Dodger Stadium, ready to make his MLB debut. Jackson is the Dodgers #7 prospect according to mlb.com and has made it to AAA, so, the fact that he got called up wasn’t a total surprise, but, I don’t think anyone expected it to be this soon.
How’d He Do in His MLB Debut?
As amazement slowly turned to excitement, my focus started shifting to Jackson’s last start, which was with OKC, but in Albuquerque. In that outing, Jackson gave up just 1 run and 3 hits in 3 innings of work in a game that saw 21 runs scored. It was a game that was part of a series where 11-10 scores were the norm, so, giving up just 1 run in 3 innings was an exceptional outing.
Jackson’s Stuff
The first thing that is of most relevance when breaking down Andre Jackson is how much his motion resembles Greg Maddox.
Jackson’s fastball can reach up to 96, and, like Maddox, it has a ton of “arm side” fade.
Watch the “arm side” fade on the fastball in this next video.
Jackson doesn’t just resemble Greg Maddox with his motion. His change-up is nearly identical as well and has good “hop”, meaning, it starts inside to a lefty and appears to “hop” back over the plate. Jackson recorded his first strikeout in the Big Leagues with this pitch.
Compare Jackson’s changeup, side by side, with Greg Maddox throwing that exact same pitch
Adding to his arsenal of a tailing fastball and a “Greg Maddox” type change up, Jackson can also sink the change up to give it a 12-6 downward tumble to dive under the strike zone.
Jackson does have a curveball and a slider, but they are not as refined as his tailing fastball and his 2 differently shaped change-ups so he doesn’t use them as much.
Outfielder in College
Jackson was mainly an outfielder at Utah, and, with an era of 6.53, he wasn’t dominant while pitching in College, and also missed all of 2017 due to Tommy John surgery. But, despite all of that, the Dodgers still drafted him in the 12th round, and, needless to say, haven’t regretted it a bit. Jackson is 2nd in the Dodgers organization in era and batting average against, and, having played so much outfield in College, is obviously an above-average athlete for the position. He also showed intangibles like poise and swag beyond his age and promises to have a long and very productive career at the MLB level.
