Former Duke Player of the Year finds pro success with Marlins

On March 31, 1998, Ryan Jackson found himself walking atop clouds on the field of Pro Player Stadium in Miami. Decked-out in a Florida Marlins uniform, the former Duke All-American was about to do something only seven Blue Devils can claim to have done in the last 40 years-play in a Major League Baseball game.

Sandwiched between World Series hero Edgar Renteria and former National League MVP Gary Sheffield in the batting order, Jackson stepped to the plate in his first major-league at-bat against veteran Chicago Cubs hurler Kevin Tapani. With runners on first and second, the left-hander slapped Tapani's 0-2 pitch into right field for a clean single, recording his first career hit and RBI.

"First of all, [the experience] was nerve-wracking," Jackson said from his hotel room in Pittsburgh nearly two weeks into his major league career. "The first at-bat, the nerves are flowing. He made me look stupid on the first two pitches, and then I just got enough of one to get a hit.

"I was just thrilled, even more so because the person playing first base at the time was someone that I really looked up to in my career: Mark Grace. In fact, he was the one looking for the ball to give me [as a keepsake]."

Go back about two years, however, and it almost seemed that the only way Jackson would see Grace would be on television. While doing some light base-running drills prior to spring training in 1996, Jackson slid into second base, popped back up and then felt something pop in his knee.

That something was a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee-an injury that threatened to crumble Jackson's dreams of playing major league baseball to pieces.

"I had some doubts about whether or not I would ever make it [to the majors] while I was injured," Jackson said. "Because I went through a lot of pain after surgery, it was pretty tedious. You had to have some doubts in a situation like that."

Before the injury, Jackson had progressed rapidly through the Marlin's organization and was slated to play at Double-A Portland after only two years of professional baseball.

Then, Marlins owner Wayne Huizenga decided he had enough fun with his toy.

Over the next three months or so, Huizenga would proceed to cast off nearly every key member of that championship team. Kevin Brown, Moises Alou, Jeff Conine and Robb Nen all found themselves in different uniforms.

"Obviously, from a fan's perspective it's disappointing to see their championship team dismantled like that," Jackson said. "From [the rookie's] point of view, we can't sit here and lie and say we were disappointed that it happened."

The mass player exodus opened the doors for numerous prospects like Jackson to show what they can do at the Major League level, and Jackson was not one to let the chance slip away. The 26 year-old first baseman led the Marlins in hitting during spring training and earned his opening day roster spot, something that his college coach never doubted he would do.

"I felt very confident he was going to be a big league player," said Duke coach Steve Traylor, who coached Jackson all four years. "He's a very mature kid, he loves to play, he's got that enthusiasm for the game that managers and coaches are going to love.

"He's far more than adequate defensively-he's an outstanding defensive player. If [the Marlins] keep him at first base, I think they're gonna have one of the best defensive first baseman in the big leagues. Hitting-wise, he had tremendous potential as a hitter [when he was at Duke]."

Although Jackson's hitting potential failed to materialize into his being drafted after his junior season, the Marlins snatched Jackson with their seventh-round selection after his senior season and assigned him to Elmira for a half-season of rookie-ball.

In 72 games at Elmira, Jackson hit .290, the lowest single-season average in his professional career, and slammed six homers. Admittedly, Jackson said the change from the relatively lax college schedule to the professional ranks was difficult at first.

"It's weird," Jackson said. "You're not sure what you're entering, and then when you start playing, you realize there's a big difference. In college I was a centerfielder, once I got drafted, I was immediately out there for half of that season playing rookie ball. It wore on me, I already lost some speed, and [the coaches] saw that and immediately I was moved to left field."

The next season, Jackson moved up to Single-A Kane County, where he hit .293 with 10 homers and 32 RBI and was selected as a Midwest League All-Star. Four months after the conclusion of that season, Jackson found himself on the surgical table undergoing major reconstructive knee surgery; less than two years after that, however, Jackson would find himself in the big leagues, picking the brains of Jim Leyland-his first big-league manager.

"What could be better than [playing for Leyland]?" Traylor said. "He's got the respect of every player in the big leagues, you can't have a better guy in your corner than that. Obviously, he knows the game and he knows the type of player it takes to win. If he's going to find Ryan as one of those players, it's about as good of an endorsement as you can have."

Traylor himself gave Jackson another ringing endorsement by describing him as "absolutely one of the best players ever to play [at Duke]."

Jackson, who pitched, played outfield and first base during his career at Duke, enjoyed one of the most phenomenal seasons in the history of college baseball in 1994. In addition to serving as a spot starter and a closer on the mound, Jackson flourished at the plate and captured the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year honor.

The Sarasota native made his case for the post-season awards by notching five multi-homer games and collecting hits in 34 straight games on his way to a spectacular .378, 22HR, 63 RBI season. A season that reaped its ultimate reward when Jackson found out he was named Duke's first-ever National Player of the Year.

"I remember the exact situation," Jackson said. "We were at The Green Room-me, Scott Schoenweis, Craig Starman-shooting pool, drinking a couple of beers. Somehow, Traylor flagged me down on the phone and told me. When I went back to shooting pool, I just had a big ol' grin on my face."

Now that he's in the majors, people just can't seem to wipe that big ol' grin off his face, and Jackson doesn't seem to mind that one bit.

Note: Through 11 games with the Marlins this season, Jackson is hitting .270 with 3 RBI in 37 at-bats.