The last few seasons have been rough on former Atlanta Braves reliever Luke Jackson. His final year with the Braves was cut short because of the need to undergo Tommy John surgery in 2022. The relentless Jackson fought his way back to pitch 33.1 strong innings for the San Francisco Giants last year, so things were trending in the right direction for the 32 year-old former night shift member.
Sadly, things took a step back in the wrong direction for Luke "skywalker" Jackson on Opening Day against the San Diego Padres.
Jackson headed to IL with lower back strain
Luke Jackson was the first arm out of the bullpen for the Giants in 2024, however his Opening Day turned into one he would like to forget. Jackson entered the game with the Giants clinging to a 3-2 lead against the Padres in the bottom of the seventh.
He then surrendered back to back singles to Luis Campusano and Tyler Wade to get into immediate trouble. The right-hander reliever then had a long battle with Padres centerfielder Jackson Merrill, which eventually resulted in a eight-pitch walk.
Luke Jackson exited the game after sustaining an apparent injury on this pitch pic.twitter.com/4P7Pp29O72
— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) March 28, 2024
The worst thing about that at-bat was Luke Jackson's reaction on the final pitch. In the video you can see that Luke is in discomfort as soon as he let the baseball go, and he immediately calls for the Giants training staff once the AB is over.
The Giants removed him from the game after throwing just 15 pitches. Even worse for Jackson is the fact the following reliever allowed all three of his runners to score. And because Jackson didn't retire a batter, that means his ERA thus far in 2024 reads INF (infinite).
The Giants updated Jackson's status yesterday afternoon and placed him on the 15-day IL with a lower back strain. Hopefully it's a speedy recovery for the former Braves night shift member, and Jackson gets back on the mound soon.