Sonny Jackson

Shortstop · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1963-1974)

Sonny Jackson was a shortstop who played in Major League Baseball from 1963 to 1974 for the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves, a span of 12 seasons. In 936 career games, he hit .251 with 767 hits, 7 home runs, and 162 RBI.

AVG (Batting Average):
Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
HR (Home Runs):
Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
RBI (Runs Batted In):
Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.

Data updated

AVG .251
HR 7
RBI 162
H 767
OPS .611
PIV -4,202
Position
Shortstop
Bats / Throws
L / R
Height / Weight
5'9" / 150 lb
Born
7/9/1944 in Washington, DC, USA
MLB Debut
1963-09-27
Last Game
1974-07-09

Full name: Roland Thomas Jackson

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Career Batting Statistics

Sonny Jackson — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
936 3,055 396 767 81 28 7 162 126 250 265 .251 .308 .303 .611 -4,202

Career AVG .251 vs. league average .249 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career OBP .308 vs. league average .315 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .303 vs. league average .368 across their career seasons — 17.8% below league average.

Career OPS .611 vs. league average .683 across their career seasons — 10.5% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Sonny Jackson Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1963 HOU NL 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 — — — — 0.0
1964 HOU NL 9 23 3 8 1 0 0 1 1 2 3 .348 — — — — 0.0
1965 HOU NL 10 23 1 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 .130 — — — — 0.0
1966 HOU NL 150 596 80 174 6 5 3 25 49 42 53 .292 .248 (+17%) .309 (+10%) .376 (-11%) .685 (-2%) -10.7
1967 HOU NL 129 520 67 123 18 3 0 25 22 36 45 .237 .242 (-2%) .306 (-7%) .357 (-21%) .663 (-14%) -1094.6
1968 ATL NL 105 358 37 81 8 2 1 19 16 25 35 .226 .236 (-4%) .298 (-6%) .340 (-21%) .638 (-14%) -669.4
1969 ATL NL 98 318 41 76 3 5 1 27 12 35 33 .239 .248 (-4%) .320 (-1%) .369 (-22%) .689 (-12%) -530.5
1970 ATL NL 103 328 60 85 14 3 0 20 11 45 27 .259 .253 (+2%) .325 (+7%) .385 (-17%) .711 (-6%) -217.5
1971 ATL NL 149 547 58 141 20 5 2 25 7 35 45 .258 .249 (+3%) .316 (-5%) .365 (-11%) .682 (-8%) -728.1
1972 ATL NL 60 126 20 30 6 3 0 8 1 7 9 .238 .243 (-2%) .310 (-10%) .353 (-6%) .664 (-8%) -184.1
1973 ATL NL 117 206 29 43 5 2 0 12 6 22 13 .209 .256 (-19%) .325 (-13%) .378 (-33%) .703 (-24%) -767.4
1974 ATL NL 5 7 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .429 — — — — 0.0
Career · 12 seasons 936 3,055 396 767 81 28 7 162 126 250 265 .251 — — — — -4,202

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

Sonny Jackson — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

Sonny Jackson — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1969 NLCS ATL 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (936 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

Sonny Jackson — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home4731500212383596.255
Away4631555184384266.247

Last 10 Games — Batting

Sonny Jackson — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1974-07-09 ATLPITL 100000000
1974-07-07 ATLCHCL 100000000
1974-07-06 ATLCHCW 101000000
1974-07-05 ATLCHCL 301000000
1974-07-05 ATLCHCL 101000000
1973-09-30 ATLHOUL 100000000
1973-09-23 ATLHOUW 111000100
1973-09-20 ATLLADL 000000000
1973-09-19 ATLLADL 300000000
1973-09-18 ATLSDPL 100000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Sonny Jackson — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
3B 7 5 13 10 1 0
OF 212 153 395 9 8 0
SS 630 589 984 1801 149 282

Season-by-Season Fielding

Sonny Jackson — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1963 HOU SS 1 1 0 5 1 0
1964 HOU SS 7 5 8 12 3 1
1965 HOU 3B 1 0 0 0 0 0
1965 HOU SS 8 7 16 15 1 3
1966 HOU SS 150 150 270 449 37 73
1967 HOU SS 128 124 204 379 35 63
1968 ATL SS 99 94 132 307 22 35
1969 ATL SS 97 88 161 254 17 48
1970 ATL SS 87 78 123 240 26 40
1971 ATL OF 145 136 336 8 7 0
1972 ATL 3B 6 5 13 10 1 0
1972 ATL OF 10 4 6 0 0 0
1972 ATL SS 17 15 28 52 2 9
1973 ATL OF 56 12 51 1 1 0
1973 ATL SS 36 27 42 88 5 10
1974 ATL OF 1 1 2 0 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Sonny Jackson Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Third Base 7
Shortstop 631
Left Field 49
Center Field 158
Right Field 6

Award Voting History

Sonny Jackson — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1966 Rookie of the Year NL 2nd 3.0 20 3

Most Similar Players

Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.

Career Spans

Sonny Jackson (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Bill McKechnie HOF
    .251 avg, 8 HR
  2. 93
    Larry Kopf
    .249 avg, 5 HR
  3. 91
    Dick Egan
    .249 avg, 4 HR
  4. 86
    Eddie Grant
    .249 avg, 5 HR
  5. 85
    Jiggs Donahue
    .255 avg, 4 HR
  6. 81
    Johnny Rawlings
    .250 avg, 14 HR

Sonny Jackson: the record in brief

September 27, 1963 and July 9, 1974 bracket Sonny Jackson's time in the majors: the debut and the last game on record. Club by club, the record runs the Houston Colt .45's (1963 to 1964), the Houston Astros (1965 to 1967), and the Atlanta Braves (1968 through 1974). Listed as a shortstop, Jackson batted left-handed and threw right-handed. Jackson is listed at 5'9" and 150 pounds. The birth record reads July 9, 1944, in Washington, DC, USA. The given name on file is Roland Thomas Jackson.

Jackson's career batting table shows 936 games, 3,055 at bats and 767 hits, a .251 average; the totals also include 7 homers, 162 runs batted in, and 126 stolen bases. Reaching base at a .308 clip and slugging .303, Jackson finished with a .611 OPS. Jackson hit .251 while the league hit .249 over the same span, a figure close to average. In OPS terms, Jackson's .611 stands 10.5% below the league's .683. The hits column peaks at 174, in 1966. Jackson drove in a season-high 27 runs in 1969. Jackson stole 49 bases in 1966, the most of any season listed.

Frequently Asked Questions about Sonny Jackson

What years did Sonny Jackson play?
Sonny Jackson played in Major League Baseball from 1963 to 1974.
Was Sonny Jackson a pitcher?
No. Sonny Jackson was a position player (Shortstop).
How many home runs did Sonny Jackson hit?
Sonny Jackson hit 7 career home runs with 767 hits.
What was Sonny Jackson's career batting average?
Sonny Jackson batted .251 over his career, with 767 hits in 3,055 at bats.
How many RBI did Sonny Jackson have?
Sonny Jackson drove in 162 runs in his career.
Is Sonny Jackson in the Hall of Fame?
No. Sonny Jackson has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.