Player Profile: Al Jackson
Alvin (Al) Jackson was born on December 26, 1935 in Waco, Texas. He played college baseball at Wiley College in Marshall, Texas. He signed an amateur, free agent deal in 1955 to join the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. He played briefly in both 1959 and 1961 with the Pirates but Jackson was then selected by the Mets in the 1961 expansion draft as their 22nd selection.
As did many other expansion teams, the 1962 Mets struggled. They managed a National League worst 40–120 record. But, that meant more opportunity to play. The 26-year-old Jackson made 36 appearances (33 starts) going 8–20 with a 4.40 earned run average in his rookie season.
On August 14, 1962, 5,351 fans at the Polo Grounds witnessed the most outstanding pitching performance of his young career. Jackson threw 215 pitches in a 15 inning affair with the Philadelphia Phillies. He allowed only 6 hits and 2 earned runs in his eventual loss, but the 15 inning complete game is still the longest complete game in Mets team history. And it will likely never be broken. Box Score
Jackson became the first African-American pitcher to start an Opening Day for the Mets, which he did in 1964.
After his playing career, the original Met spent an impressive 50 years in a New York Mets uniform. After his professional career, Jackson became a major league coach, minor league pitching coordinator, and a front office advisor for the club.
Jackson worked with and helped mold so many talented arms in the Mets farm system.
Ron Darling said of Jackson, “Al changed the path of my professional baseball career and for that, I will be forever grateful.” He has even worked with current Mets, Noah Syndergaard and Jacob deGrom.
Jackson passed away on August, 19, 2019 in Port St. Lucie, FL — the home of the Mets Spring Training and single-A affiliate. Port St. Lucie was a place he spent a lot of time at still in his later years.
In January 2020, Al Jackson was posthumously honored with the Mets Hall of Fame Achievement Award for contributions to the organization. It was said of Jackson by Mets leadership, “You can’t measure the impact he had on players as a major league and minor league coach.”
Jackson is often remembered by Mets fans as an original Met, but his legacy in the game is much deeper than that. He is a member of the fraternity of African-American baseball players and coaches. He has also been a key contributor to the careers of so many that have come up through the Mets system. We salute Jackson as we continue to celebrate his contributions to the Mets and baseball.
