[mrreality68]

Originally Posted by rats60

Through the 1920 season

Ty Cobb .369/.423/.512/.935
Joe Jackson .356/.423/.517/.940
Tris Speaker .342/.412/.484/.896

Joe Jackson was compariable to Ty Cobb. He hit for a lower average, but he got on base at the same rate and hit with slightly better power than Cobb. Joe Jackson was a significantly better hitter than Tris Speaker. If he hadn't been banned from baseball, it is very likely that Jackson would have been part of the first HOF class along with Wagner, Cobb and Ruth. Joe Jackson would have benefited greatly from the livelier ball of the 1920s.

Yes, Joe Jackson was banned from baseball, but Tris Speaker (along with Ty Cobb) actually took part in fixing a major league baseball game.

Joe Jackson was a very popular player during his time and drew fans into the stands.
He was a Great player during his career

Jackson never won a batting title, which can be mostly attributed to the fact that Cobb took home the crown an incredible 12 times between 1907 and 1919. Even in 1911, when Jackson hit an amazing.408, Cobb bested him at .419.

And this is what Cobb said about Jackson

In an article that appeared in the June 5, 1942 issue of the Record Journal (Meriden, CT), he spoke at length about why Jackson was the ultimate hitter:
“I don’t care how we feel or what some folks may say about some of the tragic incidents in that man’s baseball life. You can’t take away from him the fact he was the greatest hitter the game has ever known.
“He was greater than I, although I managed to top him in the records each year we fought it out for the batting titles. Jackson could hit any kind of pitch, from his shoe tops to his head. There may have been some things I could do better, such as drag bunts, and they say I had a faster getaway from the plate on the swing. But Jackson never was fooled up there, and I think he had the best eyes, and the keenest reflexes of any hitter I ever saw.”