DeSean Jackson’s baseball roots: 15 years ago, touted prospect wowed MLB scouts
New York TimesThe question about DeSean Jackson was posed by a Phillies executive to the club’s Southern California area scout 15 years ago, before any Eagles fan who didn’t study high school recruiting rankings or West Coast prep sports had ever heard of the wide receiver. “It’s on another level.” At the time, Jackson was a high schooler at Long Beach Poly Prep. In a recent appearance on teammate Lane Johnson’s Instagram Live show, “Outside the Lane,” Jackson said the Tampa Bay Rays wanted to take him in the first round, if he was willing to quit football. “There’s nobody in the big leagues who runs like this.” DeSean Jackson, center fielder? The 2005 article pointed out that Jackson’s bat needed work, but said the consensus was Jackson “had the makeup of a future major leaguer.” “I wasn’t no big power hitter, but I used to make contact, get on base and steal every base — and home,” Jackson said during his conversation with Johnson.
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