Randy Johnson returns Monday
I am far more excited about this than I should be.
My first season as a baseball fan was 2001. If you remember, Randy Johnson was coming off of three straight years of 300 or more strikeouts, and 2001 was as big of a year as any. In 249.2 innings, Randy Johnson put up a 2.49 ERA to go along with 71 walks and a mind-blowing, earth-shattering 372 strikeouts. This was the third-highest total in the modern era, and the highest since Nolan Ryan struck out 383 in 1973.
More importantly for me at the time, Randy combined with Curt Schilling to lead the Diamondbacks to the World Series. To do this, the D-Backs had to overcome those god-damned Yankees - at the time, I wasn’t as fair-minded and objective as I pretend to be now. The combination of a monster season and the triumph of the underdog against the hated villain led me to adopt Randy Johnson as my favourite player, despite being a pure Blue Jay homer at the time.
As time passed, I became less and less enamored of Randy. I swear, this had absolutely nothing to do with his trade to the Yankees. Nothing. At all. However, while I may not have been the fanboy I once was, I still loved to root for Randy. Over the years, as my baseball sophistication has grown, my appreciation for Randy Johnson as a baseball player has matured along with it. No longer do I see Randy as the World Series hero of 2001. Now, I see him as the truly incredible player he is.
Much is made of the successes Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens have had in the latter stages of their career. (I’m going to ignore the obvious other side of that story). Partly due to injuries, and partly due to occasional struggles, Randy Johnson’s amazing twilight has taken a backseat in the media.
In 2004 at the age of 40, Johnson posted a 2.60 ERA in 245.2 innings. This is an ERA+ of 177 (ie. 77% above average), and is tied for the 104th best ERA+ of all time. Think about that. At an age when most pitchers are retired, Randy was pitching at a historically great level.
2005 was not on the same level as 2004. However, at the age of 41 pitching in Yankee Stadium, Randy still put up a 3.79 ERA in 225.2 IP, with well over 4x as many strikeouts as walks (211 to 47).
The next two years were rough. In 2006, Randy’s K, BB and HR rates all suffered as his ERA edged over 5 for the first time since 1989 - a year in which he pitched 29.2 innings. In 2007, back in Arizona, Randy was productive when healthy, but those times were scarce. In only 56.7 innings, Randy had a 3.81 ERA, paired with 72 strikeouts and only 13 walks.
The outlook for 2008 is - let’s say uncertain. He started this year on the DL, and injury questions will plague him as long as he plays baseball. Even when healthy, it’s obvious he won’t be putting up 370 K seasons anymore. Still, whether the Randy Johnson who has more strikeouts than innings in 16 of the last 18 years or the Randy Johnson the expensive bust of 2006 shows up, I will watch on Monday. More so than Barry Bonds or Griffey Jr., Pedro Martinez or Roger Clemens, I will remember Randy Johnson fondly, both as the remarkable player he is and as the hero of the first World Series I ever experienced.
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Johnson will retire by midyear. His body just can’t handle it anymore.
Man Denny, you always seem like so much more of a long-time baseball fan than I and I’ve been a fan for over a decade more than you… Kudos to you for studying lots!