Royals History: Remembering Bo Jackson 30 Years Later

Bo Jackson Makes NFL And MLB All-Star Games

By 1989, Bo Jackson’s baseball skills had developed to the point that he was named to the All-Star team. He was in the middle of a season in which he hit .256/.310/.495 with 32 home runs, 105 RBIs, and 26 stolen bases.

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Bo Jackson had clearly established himself as someone capable of the most spectacular plays anyone had ever seen on a baseball diamond. What’s crazy is that Bo Jackson’s baseball skills still lacked refinement. He often made poor reads in the outfield and failed to cut down on his swing with two strikes at the plate, leading to a lot of strikeouts.

Even so, his tremendous natural ability was obvious and he continued to improve with experience.

In that season’s MLB All-Star game in Anaheim, Bo Jackson stopped a National League rally in the top of the first inning with a nice running catch in left field, then lead off the top of the first by slamming a home run off NL starter Rick Sutcliffe. He later stole a base, becoming the first player to both hit a home run and steal a base in the same All-Star game.

Oh yeah, Jackson was also named the All-Star Game MVP. I guess he belonged with the best players in baseball.

Bo Jackson also made the Pro Bowl in football after the 1990 season. Bo Jackson rushed for a career high 950 yards in 173 attempts in 1989 (5.5 ypc), and followed up that season with 698 yards in 125 attempts in 1990 (5.6 ypc). Bo had clearly shown he possessed superstar ability in both football and baseball.

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