As much of a megastar as Bo Jackson was in the 1980s and early '90s before a hip injury turned him mortal, he's going to be even bigger in legend as time passes. Simply because, we'll always wonder what might have been. What if he hadn't gotten hurt playing football and needed a plastic and titanium hip to get around? What if he played 16 NFL games a year? How many football records might he hold?
What if he had only concentrated on one sport? And what if his baseball abilities had been allowed to blossom to their greatest extent?
In 1985, when he was still in college at Auburn, a Kansas City Royals scout named Ken Gonzales prepared a report before the major league draft. Some 28 years later, it's re-appeared on the Internet. Ready?
Here it is:
Historic document! My favorite parts:
• "Don Baylor (Yanks) type body." Has Baylor, who had a great MLB career, ever been so complimented?
• "The best pure athlete in America." Yeah, in '85 and maybe for all time.
• "Good kid; quiet and not an outgoing type." A reminder that Jackson overcome a speech impediment that was no impediment in helping him become sport's best pitch man aside from Michael Jordan.
• Arm strength: 6 out of 8 today, 7 of 8 tomorrow. I think Gonzales might have left him one point short here.
Big BLS H/N: Reddit, via Dayn Perry of CBS Eye on Baseball
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