Austin Jarriel Jackson (born February 1, 1987) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

center fielder. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for the Detroit Tigers,

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

, Chicago Cubs,

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

and

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

. Prior to playing professionally, he attended

Billy Ryan High School Billy Ryan High School (Ryan or RHS) is a public high school located in east Denton, Texas. It is the second high school of the Denton Independent School District and classified as a 5A school by the UIL. The original building for the school ...

. Jackson was drafted by the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

in the 2005 Major League Baseball draft. He was traded to the Tigers at the end of the 2009 season, where he made his MLB debut in 2010, being nominated for

American League Rookie of the Year In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is given annually to two outstanding rookie players, one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL), as voted on by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). The aw ...

that season. The next two seasons, he made the

postseason The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

on both occasions with the Tigers. During those seasons, he led the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

in hitting triples, and won the

Fielding Bible Award A Fielding Bible Award recognizes the best defensive player for each fielding position in Major League Baseball (MLB) based on statistical analysis. John Dewan and Baseball Info Solutions conduct the annual selection process, which commenced in 2 ...

for

center field A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...

in 2011.

Early years

In 1999, '' Baseball America'' named Jackson the best 12-year-old baseball player in the nation, and the best 15-year-old baseball player three years later. Jackson attended

in Denton, Texas. In basketball, he was listed as the #10-ranked high school point guard in the country by

Athlon Sports Parade Media (previously known as AMG/Parade and Athlon Media Group) is a publisher founded in 1967 that is based in Nashville, Tennessee. Nashville's Spencer Hays was its majority stockholder. It was purchased by The Arena Group in 2022 and now ...

after he averaged 22.5 points, five rebounds and three assists per game his junior year in high school. In baseball, he hit .423 with five homers and 34 RBI for his class AAAA Texas State runner-up baseball team and was rated the No. 14 draft prospect among high school players in the nation by ''Baseball America''.

Professional career

New York Yankees

Though Jackson committed to play both baseball and basketball for

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

, the

drafted him in the eighth round (259th overall) in the 2005 Major League Baseball draft. To convince him to sign instead of attending Georgia Tech, the Yankees offered Jackson $800,000, a record signing bonus for an eighth round pick. From 2005 to 2009 Jackson rose up the Yankees organization and after a slow start, he became a top prospect for the Yankees. For the 2009 season he was the Yankees top prospect according to '' Baseball America''. After the 2009 season, Jackson was added to the 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.

Detroit Tigers

On December 9, 2009 Jackson was traded to the Detroit Tigers as part of a three-team trade that brought

Curtis Granderson Curtis Granderson Jr. (born March 16, 1981), nicknamed the "Grandyman", is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, New York Mets, Los Ange ...

to the Yankees. Jackson entered the 2010 season as the Tigers third-best prospect, according to '' Baseball America''. Austin Jackson 2010

Jackson made his major league debut on April 5, 2010, against the Kansas City Royals, going one for five. He hit his first major league

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

on April 25, 2010, off of Colby Lewis of the Texas Rangers. Through the first month of the season Jackson led the majors in hits with 36, and was named the AL Rookie of the Month. On June 2, 2010, against the

, Jackson made a difficult running catch in the ninth inning of

Armando Galarraga's near-perfect game In a Major League Baseball game played on June 2, 2010 at Comerica Park in Detroit, Michigan, Detroit Tigers pitcher Armando Galarraga nearly became the 21st pitcher in Major League history to throw a perfect game. Facing the Cleveland Indians ...

. The perfect game eventually ended with two outs in the ninth after a blown call by umpire

Jim Joyce James Alfred Joyce III (born October 3, 1955) is an American former professional baseball umpire who worked in the American League (AL) from 1987 to 1999 and throughout Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2000 to 2016. He wore uniform number 6 whil ...

. He was named an outfielder on ''Baseball Americas 2010 All-Rookie Team. He was also named an outfielder on the 2010

Topps The Topps Company, Inc. is an American company that manufactures chewing gum, candy, and collectibles. Formerly based in New York City, Topps is best known as a leading producer of American football, baseball, basketball, ice hockey, soccer, a ...

Major League Rookie All-Star Team. On November 15, 2010, Jackson came in second in the 2010

voting, behind Rangers closer

Neftalí Feliz Neftalí Feliz Antonio (; born May 2, 1988) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Toros de Tijuana of the Mexican League. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers, Detroit Tigers, Pittsburgh ...

. Jackson finished his rookie season by playing 151 games with a .293 batting average, 10 triples, 4 home runs, 41 RBI, and an AL-leading 170 strikeouts. Jackson was named the American League Player of the Week for the week of August 29–September 4, 2011. In receiving the award for the first time, Jackson had a .529 batting average (18 for 34) during the week with three doubles, three triples, two home runs, five runs batted in, and 13 runs scored. The Tigers went 5–2 that week to increase their lead in the American League Central Division. He won a

in 2011 as the best fielding center fielder in MLB. Jackson played 153 games in 2011 batting .249 with 10 home runs, 45 RBI, an AL-leading 11 triples, and 181 strikeouts. In Game 6 of the

2011 ALCS The 2011 American League Championship Series (ALCS) was a best-of-seven playoff that pitted the winners of the 2011 American League Division Series (the Texas Rangers and Detroit Tigers), against each other for the American League. The Rangers ...

, Jackson hit his first career postseason home run. The Tigers would however lose the game and the series to the Texas Rangers. On April 5, 2012, Jackson was the leadoff hitter and played center field on Opening Day for the Tigers, where he went 3–5 with an RBI and a run. Jackson hit a walk-off, bases-loaded single down the third base line to give the Tigers the win over the Red Sox, 3–2. Jackson played 137 games in 2012, batting .300 with 16 home runs, 66 RBI, and an AL-leading 10 triples. Jackson went to the postseason with the Tigers for a second straight season, and he hit a home run in the series-clinching Game 4 against the

in the ALCS. But the Tigers eventually got swept in 4 games by the

in the World Series. Injuries limited Jackson to 129 games in 2013. Serving as the Tigers leadoff hitter again, he batted .272 with 12 home runs, 49 RBIs, and a career-low 8 stolen bases. On January 17, 2014, Jackson and the Tigers avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year deal for the 2014 season worth $6 million. Austin Jackson with Mariners in 2014

Seattle Mariners

On July 31, 2014, the Tigers traded Jackson to the

in a three-team deal that sent

Drew Smyly Todd Andrew Smyly (born June 13, 1989), nicknamed "Big Shooter", is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Detroit Tigers, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Ra ...

, Nick Franklin and Willy Adames to the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home v ...

, and David Price to the Detroit Tigers. On May 3, 2015, Jackson sprained his ankle in a game against the Houston Astros, and was placed on the 15-day disabled list the following day.

Chicago Cubs

On August 31, 2015, the Mariners traded Jackson to the Chicago Cubs for a

player to be named later In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...

and an international signing bonus slot. Jackson ended the 2015 season having played 136 games, stealing 17 bases with a .696 OPS.

Chicago White Sox

On March 6, 2016, Jackson signed a one-year, $5 million deal with the

. On August 25, White Sox GM Rick Hahn told the media that Jackson would miss the rest of the season after he had been out since June 10. He had surgery to repair a medial meniscus tear in his left knee. Over 54 games, he tallied a .254 batting average, 18 RBI, 12 doubles, and 24 runs scored.

Cleveland Indians

Jackson signed a minor league contract with the

on January 25, 2017. The Indians purchased Jackson's contract on March 27, 2017. On August 1, 2017, Jackson robbed Hanley Ramirez of a home run by making a spectacular catch over the right center field wall. He traveled approximately 97 feet and flipped over the wall into the

Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

bullpen. This was declared by broadcasters and MLB as the "play of the year" for 2017.

San Francisco Giants

On January 22, 2018, Jackson signed a two-year deal with the

worth $6 million over two years.

Texas Rangers

On July 8, 2018, Jackson was traded to the Texas Rangers along with pitcher

Cory Gearrin Cory Nathanial Gearrin (born April 14, 1986) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves, San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, New York ...

and minor league pitcher

Jason Bahr Jason Thomas Bahr (born February 15, 1995) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. Career Bahr attended Lake Mary High School in Lake Mary, Florida. He enrolled at the University of Central Florida (UCF) and made the UCF ...

, in exchange for a player to be named later or cash considerations. Three days later, he was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must within seven days, return the pla ...

by the Rangers. The Rangers released Jackson on July 14.

New York Mets

On July 27, Jackson signed with the

, as depth in center field, with Juan Lagares sidelined for the remainder of the season due to a toe injury and Yoenis Cespedes out for the remainder of the season to undergo multiple surgeries to eliminate calcification and bone spurs in both heels. He hit a walk-off on

David Wright David Allen Wright (born December 20, 1982) is an American former professional baseball third baseman who played his entire 14-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career for the New York Mets. He was drafted by the Mets in 2001 MLB draft and made h ...

's final career game. He elected free agency on October 29, 2018.

Post-Career

In April 2020, Jackson expressed interest in an MLB return. As of September 2021, he had not signed with an MLB team. Starting on July 7, 2021, Jackson announced the three game series between the Detroit Tigers and Texas Rangers game alongside

Dan Dickerson Daniel Hill Dickerson (born November 13, 1958) is an American sportscaster, best known for his current position as the lead radio play-by-play voice of Major League Baseball's Detroit Tigers on the Detroit Tigers Radio Network. Early life an ...

on the Detroit Tigers Radio Network.

References

External links

: {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Austin 1987 births Living people Sportspeople from Denton, Texas Baseball players from Texas African-American baseball players Major League Baseball center fielders Detroit Tigers players Seattle Mariners players Chicago Cubs players Chicago White Sox players Cleveland Indians players San Francisco Giants players New York Mets players Gulf Coast Yankees players Charleston RiverDogs players Tampa Yankees players Trenton Thunder players Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees players Toledo Mud Hens players Tacoma Rainiers players Peoria Javelinas players Honolulu Sharks players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people