Detroit Tigers center fielder Austin Jackson is a tremendous athlete. Baseball America named him the best 12-year-old baseball player in the nation in 1999 and the best 15-year-old player a few years later. Coming out of high school, Jackson was also a top-ranked point guard prospect after averaging 22.5 points per game as a junior. That explains why he can dunk so easily.
Torii Hunter posted a video on Instagram of the 6-foot-1 Jackson throwing down a dunk with ease. It was what Hunter wrote along with the video that made it even more great.
“It’s Austin Jackson the Tigers Centerfielder,” Hunter wrote. “I did this when I was younger but there was no video or cell phones then. #straightathlete #madhops#nohomerunsaresafe.”
For the record, Hunter is 6-foot-2. He’s also 38 years old, so the Tigers probably don’t want him dunking basketballs in his spare time. Plenty of NBA players who are the same height as Jackson (Rajon Rondo to name one) can dunk, but the video still highlights how athletic he really is. It looked like the dude jumped off a trampoline.
