Randy Jackson

Ransom Joseph "Randy" Jackson (February 10, 1926 – March 20, 2019) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) player for the Chicago Cubs (1950–1955, 1959), Dodgers (1956–1958; two seasons in Brooklyn, one in Los Angeles), and Cleveland Indians (1958–1959). A book on Jackson’s career, Handsome Ransom Jackson: Accidental Big Leaguer, was published in 2016. He died at his home on March 20, 2019. Before Major League Baseball After a year at the University of Arkansas, he transferred twice, and helped lead the football teams of Texas Christian University (1945) and the University of Texas at Austin (1946) to consecutive Cotton Bowl Classic appearances as a halfback. Playing baseball in college he hit .500, .438 and .400. MLB career The Chicago Cubs signed him in 1947. On 2 May 1950, the 24-year-old made his major-league debut. "Handsome Ransom" had four solid seasons at third base for the Cubs from 1951 to 1955. Jackson followed up a slow rookie season (in which he had 111 at-bats over 34 games) with a solid second season, in which he hit .276 with 76 RBI and 16 home runs. He struggled again in his third major-league season, his average falling to .232, with 34 RBI and 9 home runs.