Andre Jackson is the Dodgers’ number 7 prospect playing for the AA affiliate Tulsa Drillers as a right-handed pitcher. He stands 6’3 weighing 210 at the age of 25 years old. He was drafted in 2017 and was taken in the 12th round by the Dodgers.
Andre has been getting lit up on the mound as of late. He has a 2-2 record with a 3.91 ERA this year and that’s how high his ERA has been his whole minor league career.
Jackson has been promoted every year of his minor league career and it’s most likely because he throws a ton of strikes (68%). He has already had Tommy John Surgery, which the Dodgers have historically targeted players coming off that surgery.
He was a pitching mix of Fastball, Curveball, Slider, and a Changeup. His fastball sits around 92-95 MPH but tops off at 98. With the average MLB spin rate of a fastball set around 2200 RPMs, his fast has a spin rate of 2300. The curveball is thrown at a north-south motion and has a lot of drop. The velocity of the curveball sits around 77-79 MPH but if he can learn how to throw it consistently in the low 80’s it will be a much more effective pitch as he doesn’t throw it much in-game. His slider, which looks more like a cutter, is thrown about 86-87 MPH and is his best swing and miss pitch. His changeup has a good speed separation with the fastball which is about a 10 MPH difference. The control of the pitch is not there and could be a huge plus pitch if he can throw it consistently for strikes.
His ETA is next year and I bet that he will be called up at that time. The one thing the Dodgers bullpen struggles with is that they can’t consistently throw strikes. When we have a guy like Andre Jackson sitting in our farm system throwing strikes consistently, I can see the Dodgers giving him a chance and calling him up and be given the chance to perform and stay up in the majors. Just recently, he was selected to pitch in the Futures Game. The Futures Game, which will be played on Sunday, July, 11th, showcases the next generation of talent. This is a good sign of things to come for Andre Jackson.