In his second year of pro ball, Jackson dominated the California League, striking out 351 batters while posting a 28-4 record. A reliever early on with the Cardinals, the strong-armed workhorse averaged 259 innings over his last ten campaigns while winning 13 or more each of his final 12 years. After leading the NL with 38 starts and 282 innings in 1960, Jackson suffered a broken jaw in spring training of 1961 when hit by Duke Snider’s shattered bat. He recovered, winning 11 of his last 12 decisions and the St. Louis baseball writers’ Comeback of the Year Award. In October 1962, Jackson and Lindy McDaniel were traded to the Cubs in a complicated three-team deal. Jackson pitched nearly 300 innings in 1964 and won a league-high 24 games, accounting for almost one third of the Cubs’ victories. Rather than report to the expansion Expos in 1969, Jackson returned to his native Idaho, becoming a sportswriter and state legislator.
