Randy Johnson
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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|---|---|
| Arizona Diamondbacks — No. 51 | |
| Starting pitcher | |
| Bats: Right | Throws: Left |
| Major League Baseball debut | |
| September 15, 1988 for the Montreal Expos | |
| Selected MLB statistics (through 2006) |
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| Win-Loss | 280-147 |
| ERA | 3.22 |
| Strikeouts | 4544 |
| Former teams | |
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Randall David Johnson (born September 10, 1963) is a left-handed American starting pitcher currently playing for the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Johnson is known for having one of the most dominant fastballs in the game, regularly approaching, and occasionally even exceeding, 100 mph during his prime. He has won the Cy Young Award five times, second only to Roger Clemens' seven.[citation needed]
Through the 2006 season, of all active pitchers lifetime Johnson is first in strikeouts per nine innings pitched (10.77 -- which is also first for all pitchers in history) and hit batsmen (178 -- which is also fourth for all pitchers in history), third in strikeouts (4,544) and hits allowed per nine innings pitched (7.14), second in shutouts (37), fourth in wins (280), sixth in ERA (3.22) and wild pitches (101), and seventh in won-lost percentage (.656)[citation needed].
Johnson was officially traded from the New York Yankees to the Arizona Diamondbacks on January 9, 2007, in exchange for Luis Vizcaino and 3 other prospects.[citation needed]
Contents |
[edit] Nickname
Perhaps the most infamous fact about Randy Johnson is his hi nickname, "The Big Unit". During batting practice in 1988, the 6'10" Johnson, then with the Montreal Expos, collided head-first with outfielder Tim Raines, prompting his teammate to exclaim, "You're a big unit!"[citation needed]. The nickname has stuck ever since. Johnson's nickname was ranked No. 98 overall in the book Glow Pucks & 10-Cent Beer: The 101 Worst Ideas in Sports History by author Greg Wyshynski.
[edit] Early life
Johnson was born in Walnut Creek, California to Carol Hannah and Rollen Charles (“Bud”) Johnson.[1] By the time he entered Livermore High School, he was a star in baseball and basketball. In 1982, as a senior, he fanned 121 batters in 66 innings of work. He threw a perfect game in his last high school start. In basketball he led the East Bay Athletic League in scoring twice.[citation needed]
He continued to star at the University of Southern California, though in 1985 he led the nation in walks with 104 in 118 innings.[citation needed]
[edit] Career
Since entering the majors, he has been among the most feared pitchers in the game, attributing to his blazing fastball, intimidating appearance (height, wild mullet hairstyle and moustache), and his angry, energetic demeanor on the mound. Part of his early intimidation factor came from his dramatic lack of control; after being traded away to the Seattle Mariners by the Montreal Expos for Mark Langston, Johnson led the AL in walks for three consecutive seasons (1990-92), and in hit batsmen in 1992 and 1993. In July 1991, facing the Brewers, the erratic Johnson allowed four runs on 1 hit, thanks to 10 walks in 4 innings. A month later, a 9th-inning single cost him a no-hitter against Oakland. Johnson suffered another 10-walk, 4-inning start in 1992.
But his untapped talent was volcanic; in 1990, Johnson became the first lefthander to strike out Wade Boggs three times in one game, and a no-hitter against Detroit attested to his potential. Johnson credits a session with Nolan Ryan late in the 1992 season with helping him take his career to the next level; Ryan has said that he appreciated Johnson's talent and did not want to see him take as long to figure certain things out as he had taken. He recommended a slight change in his delivery; Before the meeting, Johnson would land on the heel of his foot after delivering a pitch, and as such, he usually landed offline from home plate. Ryan suggested that he landed on the ball of his foot, and almost immediately, he began finding the plate more consistently.[2] Late in 1992, and after the Ryan meeting, Johnson struck out 18 against Texas, tying the AL record. In May 1993, Johnson again lost a no-hitter to a 9th-inning single; again, the opponent was the Oakland A's.
Johnson broke out in 1993 with a 19-8 record, 3.24 ERA and his first of six 300-plus strikeout seasons (308). He also recorded his 1,000th career strikeout against Minnesota's Chuck Knoblauch; amusingly, Johnson was one foot taller than the Twins' second baseman.
After pitching well in the strike-shortened 1994, Johnson won the American League Cy Young Award in 1995 with an 18-2 record, 2.48 ERA and 294 strikeouts. His .900 winning percentage was the second highest in AL history, behind Johnny Allen, who had gone 15-1 for the Cleveland Indians in 1937. Johnson, who also finished 2nd in the 1993 and 1997 AL voting, and third in 1994, remains the only Seattle Mariners pitcher to win the award.
Johnson capped the Mariners' late season comeback by pitching a 3-hitter in the AL West's one-game playoff, crushing the California Angels' hopes with 12 strikeouts. Thus unable to start in the 5-game ALDS series against the Yankees until the third game, Johnson watched as New York took a 2-0 series lead. Johnson beat the Yankees in Game 3 with 10 strikeouts in 7 innings. When the series went the distance, Johnson made a dramatic relief appearance in Game 5 on one day's rest. Entering a 4-4 game in the ninth inning, Johnson pitched the 9th, 10th, and 11th innings. He allowed 1 run, struck out 6, and held on for the series-ending win in Seattle's dramatic comeback.
However, this gutsy week of October 1995 pitching would eventually be forgotten, as Johnson posted an 0-6 playoff record in his next four playoff series, each of which his teams lost. The six consecutive postseason losses tied a major league record, as Johnson began to develop a reputation as a poor "big game pitcher."
Johnson was sidelined throughout much of the 1996 season with a back injury, but he rebounded in 1997 with a 20-4 record, 291 strikeouts, and a 2.28 ERA (his personal best). Between May 1994 and October 1997, Johnson had gone 53-9, including a 16-0 streak that fell one short of the AL record. Johnson had two 19-strikeout starts in 1997, on June 24 and August 8.
In June 1997, Oakland A's slugger Mark McGwire's swing connected perfectly with a Randy Johnson fastball; the result was a rocketing home run into the upper deck of the Kingdome, later estimated at 538 feet. The image of the home run, complete with Johnson swiveling and mouthing the word "Wow," was replayed repeatedly on sports highlight shows. Johnson had 19 strikeouts in the game but lost, 4-1.
1998 was a tale of two seasons for Johnson. He was due to become a free agent at the end of the season but the Mariners' strapped budget prevented them from making any serious offers for a contract extension during the season. Concerns over whether and when he might be traded likely played a role in Johnson's 9-10 record with the Mariners during the early part of that season. His 4.33 ERA during that stretch was his highest in a decade.
Johnson's season turned around on July 31, 1998 when a deadline trade sent him to the Houston Astros for Freddy García, Carlos Guillén, and a player to be named later (eventually John Halama). Houston was in the thick of a pennant race and Johnson's strong arm anchored their rotation. In 11 starts, he went 10-1 with a sparkling 1.28 ERA, leading the Astros to the playoffs. Despite only pitching for a third of a season in the National League, Johnson finished 7th in National League Cy Young Award voting[citation needed].
Johnson signed one of the largest contracts to that date in the off-season, inking a $53-million, four-year deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks; a second-year and relatively inexperienced franchise. It is arguably the best free agent signing in baseball history, as Johnson won the NL Cy Young Award in each of the four seasons covered by the contract[citation needed].
The deal paid immediate dividends for Arizona, as Johnson led the team to the playoffs that year on the strength of a 17-9 record and 2.48 ERA, enough to earn him his second Cy Young Award. Johnson's numbers could have been even more impressive; at one point in the season, Arizona failed to score a run in four consecutive Johnson starts, including a pair of 1-0 losses. Johnson's pitching line in the four starts: 32 innings, 19 hits, 54 strikeouts, a 1.40 ERA and an 0-4 won-lost record.
The following season, Arizona acquired Curt Schilling from the Philadelphia Phillies, giving Arizona the most feared power pitching duo in the sport.
Johnson and Schilling carried the Arizona Diamondbacks to their first franchise World Series appearance and victory in 2001 against the powerful New York Yankees, in only their fourth year of existence. The two pitchers shared the World Series MVP Award and were named Sports Illustrated magazine's 2001 "Sportsmen of the Year"[citation needed].
Johnson's performance was particularly dominating, pitching 7 innings for the victory in Game 6 and then coming on in relief-- on zero days' rest-- to pick up the win in Game 7. Johnson had already pitched a shutout in Game 2, thus tying the record with three wins in one World Series, and erasing many of the doubts regarding his postseason ineffectiveness.
Johnson's Game 7 relief appearance was his second of the 2001 season; on July 19, a game against the Padres was delayed by two electrical explosions in Qualcomm Stadium. When the game resumed the following day, Johnson stepped in as the new pitcher and racked up 16 strikeouts in 7 innings, technically setting the record for the most strikeouts in a relief stint[citation needed].
In 2002, Johnson won his fourth consecutive Cy Young Award. Oddly, he also became the only pitcher in baseball history to post a 24-5 record.[3]
Johnson spent the majority of the 2003 season on the disabled list and wasn't effective in the few injury-hampered starts he did make. One thing he did accomplish that year was hit his first career home run in a September 19, 2003 game against the Milwaukee Brewers. It is the only home run to date for Johnson, a career .128 hitter.
On May 18, 2004, Johnson became only the 17th player to throw a perfect game, and at 40 years of age, the oldest. Johnson had 13 strikeouts on his way to a 2-0 defeat of the Atlanta Braves. The perfect game made him the fifth pitcher in Major League history (after Cy Young, Jim Bunning, Nolan Ryan and Hideo Nomo) to pitch a no-hitter in both leagues. It also gave him the longest span of any pitcher between no-hitters: 14 years (although the span between Nolan Ryan's first and seventh no hitters was 18 years)[citation needed].
On June 29, 2004, Johnson struck out Jeff Cirillo of the San Diego Padres to become only the 4th person to reach 4,000 strikeouts in a career. On September 15, 2004, Johnson struck out his 4,137th batter (Colorado's Vinny Castilla) to move into third place on the career strikeout list, and break Steve Carlton's record amongst left-handers[citation needed].
He finished the 2004 season with a 16-14 record, but had a far better season than his won-lost total indicated; the D-Backs scored two or fewer runs in 17 of his 35 starts that season. Johnson led the major leagues in strikeouts (with 290). In the games where Arizona scored three or more runs, Johnson was 13-2. As his team only won 51 games that year, his ratio of winning 31.3% of his team's games was the highest for any starting pitcher since Steve Carlton in 1972 (who won 27 of the Phillies 59 wins for an all-time record ratio of 45.8%). He finished second to Roger Clemens in that year's Cy Young Award balloting. Johnson was unhappy with the D-Backs offense, and demanded a trade.
On January 6, 2005, Johnson was traded to the New York Yankees for pitcher Javier Vazquez, pitcher Brad Halsey, catcher Dioner Navarro and $9 million[citation needed]. Johnson pitched Opening Day for the Yankees on April 3, 2005 against the Boston Red Sox. Johnson was inconsistent through 2005, allowing 32 home runs to hitters; however, he regained his dominance in late 2005. He was 5-0 against the Yankees' division rival Red Sox and finished the season 17-8 with a 3.79 ERA, second in the AL with 211 strikeout.
Johnson was a disappointment in Game 3 of the 2005 Division Series against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, allowing 5 runs on 2 home runs in 3 innings. In Game 5 in L.A., Johnson made an effective relief appearance after Mike Mussina gave up 5 runs and 6 hits to give the Angels a 5-2 lead, but the Yankees were unable to come back in the series. It was Johnson's first relief appearance since Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. After an inconclusive year in pinstripes, New York fans hoped that Johnson would return to his dominant style in his second Yankee season.
Johnson began 2006 well, but then he struggled to find form. In between some impressive performances, he allowed 5 or more runs in 7 of his first 18 starts for the season. Johnson was more effective in the second half. Johnson finished the season with a 17-11 record, a subpar 5.00 ERA with 172 strikeouts. It had been revealed at the end of the 2006 season that a herniated disc in Johnson's back had been stiffening him and it was only in his second to last start of the season that he decided to get it checked. This exposure had caused him to miss his last start of 2006. After being given epidural anesthesia and a few bullpen sessions he was cleared to start in game 3 of the ALDS, however he gave up 5 runs in 5 2/3 innings. He is scheduled for surgery by Dr. Watkins, who performed a similar operation on Johnson's back in 1996.[4]
[edit] Pitches
Johnson in the prime of his career combined a blazing 96-101 mph fastball, in his later years his fastball with the Yankees has dipped to 88-94, and a slider which dives down and in at the last second away from lefties and into righties.
Due to his height, long arms, and side-arm pitching, the release point of his pitches looks like it is coming from the first base side of the mound, deceiving left-handed hitters especially. He has often dominated lefties with his slider by atypical height and release point; it feels as though he's pitching from ten feet closer than he actually is.
In a tongue-in-cheek TV sports ad, John Kruk referred to Johnson's best pitch as "Mr. Snappy"[citation needed].
[edit] Accomplishments
- 10-time All-Star (1990, 1993-95, 1997, 1999, 2000-02, 2004)
- World Series MVP Award (with Curt Schilling, 2001) with Arizona Diamondbacks
- American League Cy Young Award winner (1995)
- National League Cy Young Award winner (1999, 2000-02)
- Finished 6th in American League MVP voting (1995)
- In 2001, he became the first pitcher to record 3 wins in a single World Series since Mickey Lolich, and the 13th overall
- Finished 7th in National League MVP voting (2002)
- Led the league in ERA four times (1995, 1999, 2001, 2002)
- Led the league in wins (2002)
- Led the league in Strikeouts (1992-95, 1999, 2000-02, 2004)
- Won Triple Crown (led league in wins, ERA and strikeouts) (2002)
- On August 23, 2002, struck out 3 batters on 9 pitches in the 6th inning of a 3-2 win over the Chicago Cubs. Became the 21st National League pitcher and the 30th pitcher in Major League history to accomplish the nine-strike/three-strikeout half-inning.
- Struck out 19 batters in a game (June 24, 1997 against Oakland Athletics; August 8, 1997 against Chicago White Sox)
- Struck out 20 batters in a game on May 8, 2001 against Cincinnati Reds; Johnson recorded all 20 strikeouts in the first nine innings, but because the game went into extra innings, it was not categorized by MLB as an "official" 20-strikeout game (Tom Cheney's 16-inning, 21-strikeout game is also listed separately). Baseball has since reversed itself on the game, and now lists Johnson with Roger Clemens and Kerry Wood as 20-K pitchers.
- 4,544 career strikeouts (3rd overall)
- 10.86 strikeouts per 9 innings over career (1st overall)
- Career 280-147 record
- Threw no-hitter: June 2, 1990 (Seattle Mariners 2, Detroit Tigers 0)
- Threw perfect game: May 18, 2004 (Arizona Diamondbacks 2, Atlanta Braves 0) and became the oldest player to accomplish it, at age 40.
- In 2005, The Sporting News published an update of their 1999 book Baseball's 100 Greatest Players. Johnson did not make the original edition, but for the 2005 update, with his career totals considerably higher and his 2001 World Championship season taken into account, he was ranked at Number 60.
- Holds an MLB record with 5 consecutive 300-strikeout seasons (1998-2002)
[edit] Unusual incidents
[edit] Bird beanball
In a freak accident on March 24, 2001, during the 7th inning of a spring training game against the San Francisco Giants, Johnson threw a fastball that struck and killed a dove. After being struck by the pitch, the bird went over catcher Rod Barajas' head and landed amid a "sea of feathers." The official call was "no pitch". The Diamondbacks went on to win the game 10-5 without further incident.[5]
This was only the second time in professional baseball that a thrown baseball had killed a bird: the first one was by New York Yankees outfielder Dave Winfield during a warm-up session in 1983.
[edit] Altercation with cameraman
On January 10, 2005, Johnson noticed a CBS New York cameramen had been shooting footage of him leaving a building after taking his physical to finalize the trade that brought him to the New York Yankees. Johnson pushed WCBS-TV cameraman Vinny Everett. Everett replied with the sarcastic comment, "Welcome to New York!"[citation needed]. The next day, Johnson apologized for the incident at his press conference that made the trade official. He also appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman on the day of his introduction to the Yankees[citation needed].
[edit] Off the field
Johnson guest starred in an episode of The Simpsons, which aired on March 19, 2006. In the episode, Johnson promotes left-handed teddy bears and is met by Ned Flanders at a left-handers convention.
Johnson appeared in the movie Little Big League, playing himself.
On April 18, 2006, he was named "2nd Unsexiest Male Celebrity" by the Boston-based alternative weekly The Phoenix, behind Gilbert Gottfried.[6]
Johnson appeared in a Right Guard commercial where he fired dodgeballs at people representing odor.
[edit] Personal life
Johnson has four children with his wife Lisa: Samantha (born 28 December 1994), Tanner (born 5 April 1996), Willow (born 23 April 1998), and Alexandria (born 4 December 1999).
On March 28, 2006, the New York Daily News revealed that Johnson has a 16-year-old daughter named Heather Roszell (born 4 September 1989) living in Langley, Washington. The news was made public because of a court petition he filed on 7 February 2006, seeking $97,000 in restitution for daycare costs paid to Heather's mother[citation needed].
For years, Johnson sported a mullet hairstyle, although now his hair is shorter and better trimmed due to the Yankees' rules banning long hair. He also had to shave his goatee, but wore a mustache until September 7, 2006.
Prior to acquiring Johnson for the Diamondbacks in 1999, manager Buck Showalter had a rule banning long hair. He said nothing to Johnson about cutting his hair, drawing criticism from other players. When confronted about it, he would tell the players, "You do what he does on the mound, then we'll talk"[citation needed].
[edit] See also
- Pitchers who have thrown a perfect game
- DHL Hometown Heroes
- 3000 strikeout club
- List of MLB individual streaks
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~battle/celeb/rjohnson.htm
- ^ http://www.jockbio.com/Bios/RJohnson/RJohnson_bio.html
- ^ http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0743261585/qid=1087349959/002-7805802-8482448?redirect=true
- ^ http://arizona.diamondbacks.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070109&content_id=1776021&vkey=news_ari&fext=.jsp&c_id=ari
- ^ http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/mlb/official_info/umpires/feature.jsp?feature=qa1
- ^ http://thephoenix.com/article_ektid7852.html
[edit] External links
- Baseball-Reference.com - career statistics and analysis
- Randy Johnson at ESPN.com
- MLB.com Player Profile
- Randy beans ma of love child
- Randy Johnson - stats, news, and information from AroundtheDiamond.com
- Randy Johnson at the Internet Movie Database
- Box score of Johnson's perfect game
| Preceded by David Cone |
American League Cy Young Award 1995 |
Succeeded by Pat Hentgen |
| Preceded by Tom Glavine |
National League Cy Young Award 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002 |
Succeeded by Éric Gagné |
| Preceded by Derek Jeter |
World Series MVP (with Curt Schilling) 2001 |
Succeeded by Troy Glaus |
| Preceded by Derek Jeter |
Babe Ruth Award (with Curt Schilling) 2001 |
Succeeded by David Eckstein |
| Preceded by David Cone |
Perfect game pitcher May 18, 2004 |
Succeeded by None |
| Preceded by None |
Warren Spahn Award 1999-2002 |
Succeeded by Andy Pettitte |
Categories: Articles lacking sources from February 2007 | All articles lacking sources | Articles with unsourced statements since March 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | 1963 births | Living people | Major league players from California | Major league pitchers | New York Yankees players | Arizona Diamondbacks players | Warren Spahn Award | Jamestown Expos alumni | Montreal Expos players | Seattle Mariners players | Houston Astros players | Indianapolis Indians players | Major League Baseball pitchers who have pitched a no-hitter | Major League Baseball pitchers who have pitched a perfect game | American League All-Stars | National League All-Stars | 3000 strikeout club | University of Southern California Trojans baseball players
