One of the most iconic traits of Bo Jackson’s dual sport career was his tendency to snap bats over his knee. On Tuesday night during the Giants-Reds game in Cincinnati, San Francisco pitcher Jeff Samardzija channeled Jackson and snapped his own bat over his knee.
The strikeout happened to end the top of the eighth inning, right after the Giants plated a pair of runs to take a 3-1 lead over the Reds. Samardzija came out for the bottom of the eighth, notching a strikeout and a pair of ground outs to protect the lead.
For the night, Samardzija allowed one run on three hits in eight innings, striking out nine and walking two. On the year, he has a 3.32 ERA, 35 strikeouts, and 12 walks in 40 2/3 innings.
Like Jackson, Samardzija was also a two-sport athlete, playing football at Notre Dame. The Cubs drafted him in the 2006 MLB Draft and signed Samardzija to a five-year contract in January of 2007 before he could be taken in the NFL Draft.
