MLB History: Five Hall of Famers Who Took Unexpected Detours
By Tim Haberin
Randy Johnson – San Francisco Giants (2009)
Randy Johnson entered the Hall of Fame with the Arizona Diamondbacks, and it’s hard to argue with that choice. He spent eight exemplary seasons there during which he earned four consecutive Cy Young Awards (1999-2002) and his lone World Series ring. The 2001 Fall Classic netted him co-MVP honors with his rotation mate Curt Schilling as well.
If you were a baseball fan in the 90s, however, you might primarily remember the Big Unit as the Seattle Mariners’ ace and the most intimidating hurler in the league. After beginning his career with two years as a member of the Montreal Expos, Johnson pitched the next ten for the M’s, perfecting the art of striking out batters while wearing a permanent scowl and righteous mullet.
Johnson made a few other stops over the course of his 22-year big league career. The Houston Astros traded for him before the 1998 trade deadline in hopes of a deep postseason run, but they fell to the Padres in the NLDS. He spent the 2005 and 2006 campaigns with the Yankees, although his tenure in pinstripes didn’t exactly go as well as either side would have liked (4.37 ERA). After returning to the Arizona desert for two more seasons, the Unit took one final bow with the San Francisco Giants in 2009. He was 45 by this point, but with only five wins to go to reach 300 for his career, you can’t blame him for pushing it one more year.
Before proceeding any further, we need to go back a decade earlier. On April 16, 1999, the Giants and Diamondbacks engaged in a benches-clearing brawl. At some point during the confrontation, Johnson lost his D-Backs hat and in a positively clairvoyant move, accidently put on a Giants one. We’re not saying that in addition to being one of the best left-handed pitchers to ever pick up a baseball, the Big Unit is also psychic. But we shouldn’t rule it out either.
Johnson didn’t have a great year (4.88 ERA in 96 innings) and was eventually moved to the bullpen, but he did manage to rack up eight more victories to finish with 303 wins. Combine that with 4,875 strikeouts (second all-time behind Nolan Ryan) and you have the ingredients for a first-ballot induction into the Hall.
Next: Back in the New York Groove