Jim Johnson, Relief Pitcher

Date of Birth: 6/27/1983
Birthplace: Johnson City, New York

Jim Johnson, relief pitcher, was first drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in 2001. He played in their minor league system from 2001 through 2007, joining the Orioles for just 1 game in 2006 and 1 game in 2007.

In 2008, his first full season in the major leagues, Johnson had a 2.23 ERA in 54 games with the Orioles. He finished the season with 2 wins to 4 losses, 1 save, and 49 strikeouts to 23 walks in 68.2 innings. The next season, he had 10 saves and a 4.11 ERA in 70.0 innings in 64 games.

Johnson spent time on the DL in 2010, playing in just 26 games with the Orioles. The following season, he pitched a career high 91.0 innings in 69 games and he had a 2.67 ERA. In 2012, he had a career high 51 saves in 71 games. He was awarded the Rolaids Relief Man title that year and he led all of major league baseball relievers in saves. The following season, he had 50 saves and a 2.94 ERA in a career high 74 games.

The Orioles traded Johnson to the Oakland Athletics in December, 2013. He was released by the Athletics on August 1, 2014, and five days later, he signed a minor league contract with the Detroit Tigers. He finished the 2014 season with a 7.09 ERA in 38 games with the Athletics and 16 games with the Tigers.

Johnson became a free agent on October 30, 2014. He signed with the Atlanta Braves on December 3, 2014. He stayed with the Braves until July 30, 2015, when they traded him to the Los Angeles Dodgers. He finished the 2015 season with a 4.46 ERA in 49 games with the Braves and 23 games with the Dodgers.

The Dodgers released Johnson on October 14, 2015. A month and a half later, on November 30th, he signed a contract to return to the Braves. He had a good year with the Braves in 2016, finishing with a 3.06 ERA, 2 wins and 6 losses, 20 saves, and a career high 68 strikeouts (to 20 walks) in 64.2 innings in 65 games.

Johnson finished the 2017 season with 6 wins and 3 losses, 22 saves, 61 strikeouts to 25 walks, and a 5.56 ERA in 56.2 innings in 61 games.

The Braves traded Johnson to the Los Angeles Angels on November 30, 2017. He finished the 2018 season with 5 wins and 3 losses, 2 saves, 45 strikeouts to 22 walks, and a 3.84 ERA in 63.1 innings in 62 games.

Johnson became a free agent on October 29, 2018. He hasn't played professional baseball since 2018.

Career pitching statistics for Johnson through 2018 include:

• 674 games played
• 704.2 innings pitched
• 38-46 win-loss record
• 178 saves
• 531 strikeouts to 237 walks
• 3.79 ERA

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Jim Johnson
ESPN - Jim Johnson