March 05--MESA, Ariz. -- Joe Maddon has seen Edwin Jackson at his best, which is why he still believes his embattled Chicago Cubs starting pitcher still has potential to succeed.
"He's such a good athlete," said Maddon, who managed Jackson with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2008. "And the Dodgers knew that when they had him years ago. He's a first class athlete, and it's rare a guy who is 30 has the label of potential attached to his abilities. And you'd think it's arrived at that point -- all of it has arrived.
"It's not all arrived with him yet. It's interesting because there's room for improvement, and he knows that. The difference is he understands the major league way and how to get ready better than he did a couple years ago. I had him with the Rays when he was getting better."
Jackson, who will make his first exhibition start Monday against the Padres, beat Hall of Famer Randy Johnson in his major league debut in 2003. He won a career-high 14 games for Maddon with the Rays in 2008 and made the American League All-Star team with the Detroit Tigers in 2009, and Jackson struck out 13 in eight innings against Maddon's Rays for the Chicago White Sox in 2011.
But that's been overshadowed by Jackson's recent struggles that have included a 14-33 record in his two seasons with the Cubs that have him battling for the final spot in the rotation.
Maddon thought expectations might have soared and become unrealistic after Jackson beat Johnson on his 20th birtday in his major league debut with the Dodgers.
"The fact he was pushed through that system so quickly," Maddon recalled. "You always hear about the game he pitched against Randy Johnson. You always hear about that.
"His clock should not have been accelerated so quickly so early. I don't think he had enough time to learn his craft early on. I think he's doing that on the fly."
