Walter Johnson (1936)


Date of Birth: 11/6/1887
Date of Death: 12/10/1946
Birthplace: Humboldt, Kansas

Walter Johnson played baseball as a youth, and in high school, he was a pitcher. He signed with the Washington Senators in July, 1907.

Washington Senators

Johnson pitched in 14 games in 1907. He had 5 wins and 9 losses, 71 strikeouts to 20 walks, and a 1.88 ERA in 110.1 innings. The following season, he pitched in 36 games. In 1908, he had a 14-14 record with 160 strikeouts to 53 walks and an ERA of 1.65 in 256.1 innings. He had a 2.22 ERA in 296.1 innings in 40 games in 1909. He finished that season with 13 wins and 25 losses and 164 strikeouts to 84 walks.

Johnson led the AL in games played, innings pitched, complete games, and strikeouts in 1910. He had 25 wins and 17 losses, 313 strikeouts to 76 walks, and a 1.36 ERA in 370.0 innings in 45 games. He pitched 38 complete games. The following season, he again led the league in complete games pitched with 36. He finished the 1911 season with 25 wins and 13 losses, 207 strikeouts to 70 walks, and a 1.90 ERA in 322.1 innings in 40 games.

Johnson pitched in 37 games as a starter and 13 games of relief in 1912. He led the AL in ERA with 1.39 and in strikeouts with 303 to 76 walks. He had 33 wins and 12 losses in 369.0 innings.

In 1913, Johnson won the AL MVP award and the AL Triple Crown. He played in 48 games and he led the league in ERA, wins, strikeouts, innings pitched, and complete games. He had a career high 36 wins to 7 losses and a career low ERA of 1.14. He struck out 243 batters and walked just 38 in 346.0 innings. He pitched 29 complete games.

Johnson had career highs in games played (51, 40 as a starting pitcher) and innings pitched (371.2) in 1914. He again led the AL in games played, innings pitched, strikeouts (225 to 74 walks), wins (28 to 18 losses), and complete games pitched (33). He had a 1.72 ERA that year.

Johnson had another strong season in 1915, again leading the AL in innings pitched (336.2), complete games (35), wins (27 to 13 losses), and strikeouts (203 to 56 walks). He had a 1.55 ERA in 47 games. The following season he once more led the league in innings pitched, complete games, wins, and strikeouts. He finished the 1916 season with 25 wins to 20 losses, 228 strikeouts to 82 walks, and a 1.90 ERA in 369.2 innings in 48 games. He pitched 36 complete games that season.

In 1917, Johnson led the AL in strikeouts. He had 23 wins and 16 losses and a 2.21 ERA in 326.0 innings in 47 games. He struck out 188 batters and walked 68.

Johnson won the AL Triple Crown in 1918, leading the AL in wins, ERA, and strikeouts. He had 23 wins and 13 losses, 162 strikeouts to 70 walks, and a 1.27 ERA in 326.0 innings in 39 games. The following year, he led the league in ERA with 1.49 and in strikeouts with 147 (to 51 walks). He had a 20-14 record in 290.1 innings in 39 games.

Johnson pitched a no hitter on July 1, 1920. However, that was not one of his better seasons. He pitched in only 21 games and he had 8 wins and 10 losses and a 3.13 ERA in 143.2 innings. The following season, he led the AL in strikeouts with 143 (to 92 walks), but his ERA went up to 3.51. He had 17 wins and 14 losses in 264.0 innings in 35 games in 1921.

Johnson had a 2.99 ERA in 41 games in 1922. The following season, his ERA went up to 3.48 in 42 games. He had 15 wins and 16 losses in 1922, and 17 wins and 12 losses in 1923. He led the AL in strikeouts in 1923 with 130 (to 73 walks).

In 1924, Johnson won his second AL MVP award and his third Triple Crown. That season he had a 23-7 record, 158 strikeouts to 77 walks, and an ERA of 2.72 in 277.2 innings in 38 games.

Johnson's playing time diminished in his last three seasons in the major leagues. He pitched 229.0 innings in 30 games in 1925, and he had a 3.07 ERA with 20 wins and 7 losses. The following season, he had a 3.63 ERA and 15 wins and 16 losses in 260.2 innings in 33 games. In 1927, he pitched in just 18 games, and he had a 5.10 ERA.

Awards and MLB Records

  • AL Triple Crown (3 times)
  • AL MVP (2 times)
  • Led AL in ERA (5 times)
  • Led AL in wins (6 times)
  • Led AL lin strikeouts (12 times)
  • Led AL in games played (2 times)
  • Led AL in complete games (6 times)
  • Led AL in innings pitched (5 times)

Career Statistics

Statistics for Johnson in 21 seasons (1907-1927) in the major leagues include:

  • 12 seasons with 20 or more wins, with a high of 36 in 1913
  • 12 seasons with over 150 strikeouts, with a high of 313 in 1910
  • 15 seasons with an ERA under 3.00, with a low of 1.14 in 1913

Career pitching statistics for Johnson include:

  • 802 games played
  • 5,914.2 innings pitched
  • 417-279 win-loss record
  • 3,509 strikeouts to 1,363 walks
  • 2.17 ERA

Post Playing Career

After retiring as a major league player, Johnson managed a minor league team in 1928.

Johnson returned to the Senators as manager in 1929, a position he held through 1932. In 1933, he became manager of the Cleveland Indians and he stayed in that position through the 1935 season. His record as a manager was 529 wins to 432 losses.

Johnson was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1936 on the first ballot with 83.6% of the vote.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Walter Johnson
ESPN - Walter Johnson
Baseball Reference - Walter Johnson

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