Bo Jackson: What Could Have Been?

He attempted to play baseball in 1991 as a member of the Chicago White Sox but could only play in 23 games—batting .225 with just three home runs and zero stolen bases.

Jackson's hip injury required surgery and rehabilitation. Doctors discovered that Bo had avascular necrosis resulting from decreased blood supply to his left femur. This literally caused Bo's hip to deteriorate. Eventually, Bo's hip was replaced.

He missed the entire 1992 baseball season. Many sports' experts told Bo that he would never again be able to play baseball at the professional level. Even Bo knew that his football career had ended. Everyone figured that the days of Jackson the athlete had ended.

Rule No. 3: Don't ever tell Bo Jackson what he can't do...ever.

Jackson briefly tried his hand as a semi-professional basketball player for a team out in Los Angeles despite never having played basketball in his life. Ironically, Bo also admitted that he didn't like basketball.

Bo hated rehabbing. He hated working out in the gym—something he admitted that he never done before in his entire life. “I was always active—I went from baseball to football to baseball. I didn't have time to work out. Before I injured my hip, I thought going to the gym was for wimps,” he said.

It took over a year, but Bo eventually worked himself and his prosthetic hip back into shape. He had promised his mother that upon his return to professional baseball, he would hit a home run for her. During the time that Bo was rehabbing, his mother died.

In 1993, Bo Jackson returned to the Chicago White Sox. In his first at-bat, on his first swing, he hit a pinch-hit home run to right field. It is considered by many to be the greatest moment of Bo Jackson's career as an athlete—college or pro, baseball or football. Bo had the baseball engraved in his mother's tombstone.

Bo played in 85 games that season—splitting time as a designated hitter and an outfielder. He smacked 16 home runs and drove in 45 runs but batted only .232. His blazing speed was gone, and he was forced to rely on his power to win games.

The White Sox finished first in the American League Western Division—meaning Bo Jackson was about to receive his first taste of postseason action. Unfortunately, it was a disaster. Bo batted ten times without a hit, and the Sox lost the American League Championship Series to the eventual world champion Toronto Blue Jays.

After the season, Jackson was named the American League Comeback Player of the Year. He was also awarded the Tony Conigliaro Award—given to “a player who best overcomes an obstacle and adversity through the attributes of spirit, determination, and courage.” For Bo, it was overcoming hip replacement surgery.

However, the White Sox released Jackson after the season and many thought his future in baseball was done.

Bo managed to sign with the California Angels—batting a career-high .279 in 1994. He hit 13 home runs and drove in 43 runs. After the season, Bo Jackson retired from the game of baseball—ending his eight-year career with 141 home runs, 415 runs batted in, and a .250 career batting average.

Jackson had one more goal to accomplish—he had to fulfill a promise he made to his mother when he was in college, to complete his degree. In December of 1995, Bo Jackson graduated from Auburn University with a Bachelor of Science degree in family and child development.

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