Cliff Johnson (baseball)
Cliff Johnson | |
---|---|
Designated hitter / First baseman / Catcher | |
Born: San Antonio, Texas | July 22, 1947|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
September 13, 1972, for the Houston Astros | |
Last MLB appearance | |
September 30, 1986, for the Toronto Blue Jays | |
MLB statistics | |
Batting average | .258 |
Home Runs | 196 |
Runs batted in | 699 |
Teams | |
Career highlights and awards | |
|
Clifford "Heathcliff" Johnson, Jr. (born July 22, 1947) is a retired Major League Baseball player who played for the Houston Astros (1972–1977), New York Yankees (1977–1979), Cleveland Indians (1979–1980), Chicago Cubs (1980), Oakland Athletics (1981–82), Toronto Blue Jays (1983–84, 1985–1986) and Texas Rangers (1985). He batted and threw right-handed and split time between catcher, first baseman, and outfielder in the early part of his Major League career before becoming primarily a full-time designated hitter.
Career[]
As a catcher at San Antonio's Wheatley High School in 1965, Johnson was the 83rd pick in the 1966 baseball draft by the Houston Astros. After six seasons in the minor leagues, he made his major league debut on September 13, 1972, and played for the Astros until partway through the 1977 season, when he was traded to the Yankees.[1]
Johnson was a member of the 1977 and 1978 Yankees World Series championship teams, both over the Los Angeles Dodgers. On April 19, 1979, following a Yankee loss to the Baltimore Orioles, Reggie Jackson started kidding Johnson about his inability to hit Goose Gossage. While Johnson was showering, Gossage insisted to Jackson that he struck out Johnson all the time when he used to face him. When Jackson relayed this information to Johnson upon his return to the locker room, a fight started between Johnson and the pitcher. Gossage tore ligaments in his right thumb and missed three months of the season. Teammate Tommy John called it "a demoralizing blow to the team."[2] Johnson was traded to Cleveland two months after the brawl.[3]
As a member of the Blue Jays in the mid-1980s, Johnson was a fan favorite at Exhibition Stadium until his retirement on September 30, 1986.
In a 15-season major League career, Johnson posted a .258 batting average with 196 home runs and 699 RBI in 1369 games played. Johnson held the MLB record for pinch hit home runs with 20 until he was surpassed by Matt Stairs in 2010.
Personal[]
Johnson is the brother-in-law of retired Major League left fielder Mike Easler.
References[]
- ^ "The Milwaukee Journal - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com.
- ^ John, Tommy; Valenti, Dan (1991). TJ: My Twenty-Six Years in Baseball. New York: Bantam. p. 201. ISBN 0-553-07184-X.
- ^ "Cliff Johnson traded". Milwaukee Journal. Associated Press. 16 June 1979. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
External links[]
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
- Baseball Library
- Retrosheet
- Venezuelan Professional Baseball League statistics
- 1947 births
- Living people
- African-American baseball players
- American Association (1902–1997) MVP Award winners
- American expatriate baseball players in Canada
- Baseball players from San Antonio
- Chicago Cubs players
- Cleveland Indians players
- Columbus Astros players
- Covington Astros players
- Denver Bears players
- Florida Instructional League Astros players
- Florida Instructional League Senators players
- Gold Coast Suns (baseball) players
- Houston Astros players
- Leones del Caracas players
- American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela
- Llaneros de Portuguesa players
- Major League Baseball designated hitters
- New York Yankees players
- Oakland Athletics players
- Oklahoma City 89ers players
- Peninsula Astros players
- Raleigh-Durham Triangles players
- Texas Rangers players
- Toronto Blue Jays players
- 21st-century African-American people
- 20th-century African-American people