 ’84 Glacier Pilot Wins His 300th Major League Game
Johnson becomes 24th pitcher, sixth lefty to achieve feat
By Chris Haft / MLB.com
06/04/09 11:34 PM ET WASHINGTON
Randy Johnson would have been excused Thursday night if he wanted to let down his guard a little, loosen or lighten up, or just plain relax. Instead, he remained the quintessential Big Unit -- figuratively keep his foot on the competitive accelerator -- in the aftermath of securing his 300th career victory in the Giants' 5-1 decision over the Nationals in the first game of a doubleheader. Johnson, who no-hit Washington for four innings and ultimately allowed an unearned run and two hits in six innings, flashed his sense of humor in a postgame news conference. But even his gags carried a hint of the fire that drove him to this point and still stokes him. "It sounds funny, but I've played 21, 22 years, I'm 45 and I've come upon 300 wins, and I'm thinking, 'I only have 211 more to catch Cy Young,'" Johnson said, prompting laughter. Unless Johnson finds a time machine that fits his 6-foot-10 frame and reclaims some of his youth, he's no threat to catch Young, baseball's all-time leading winner. Nevertheless, Johnson's list of accomplishments is enviable, and it grew longer with his latest triumph. He not only became the 24th Major Leaguer to ascend to the 300-win level but also established himself as the sixth left-hander in that group. He's the first pitcher to win his 300th game on his first try since Tom Seaver, then with the Chicago White Sox, did so in August 1985. The next six -- Phil Niekro, Don Sutton, Nolan Ryan, Roger Clemens, Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine -- needed multiple attempts. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Johnson also became the second-oldest pitcher to reach the 300 mark -- behind only Niekro, who achieved the feat when he was 46 years and 188 days old on Oct. 6, 1985. Johnson is 45 years and 267 days old. Johnson's the seventh pitcher in Giants history to win 300 games while pitching for the franchise at some point in his career. He's the fourth to hit that plateau as a Giant, joining Tim Keefe, Mickey Welch and Christy Mathewson. Johnson secured his milestone victory against a fitting opponent -- the Nationals, who launched his professional career by drafting him in the second round in 1985 when they were known as the Montreal Expos. By coincidence, the Nationals also were San Francisco's opponent when Barry Bonds hit his record 756th home run. "I think I'm satisfied, but I've never been content," said Johnson, who bruised his throwing shoulder as he fell while scrambling for a comebacker to open the sixth yet finished the inning. "That's probably why I never really got caught up in the ... personal things because I always tried to excel and continue to do that." Still, the five-time Cy Young Award winner clearly appreciated the enormity of his feat. "I think I'm actually more nervous now than I was pitching," he said. Johnson has been cited by numerous observers as possibly the last 300-game winner, due to the five-man rotation which reduces the number of appearances a starter can make and the scarcity of pitchers able or willing to play long enough to win an appreciable number of games. But, having been dismissed by many experts as the next to win his 300th when Glavine did so two years ago, Johnson pointedly said, "Don't overlook Jamie Moyer" -- the Philadelphia left-hander who ranks second among active pitchers with 250 victories. Johnson's latest triumph affirmed what baseball people have long known and what he has maintained about himself: He's all about winning. Following a 36-minute rain delay -- a watery reminder of Wednesday's downpour that delayed his start overnight -- Johnson (5-4) retired the first 10 batters in a row while his teammates scored twice in the second inning to give him the requisite lead. Fred Lewis singled and Travis Ishikawa doubled with one out off rookie right-hander Jordan Zimmermann (2-3) before Juan Uribe's groundout delivered a run. Emmanuel Burriss singled to center field on an 0-2 pitch, scoring Ishikawa. The next 19 Giants hitters went down in order before they gave themselves and Johnson a cushion by adding three runs in the ninth. Aaron Rowand singled leading off against Joel Hanrahan and Edgar Renteria doubled before both scored on Randy Winn's double. Bengie Molina's single finished Hanrahan and moved Winn to third, from where he scored on pinch-hitter Pablo Sandoval's sacrifice fly. Performing under light rain and before a sparse crowd that included close to 20 of his relatives and friends, Johnson lost his no-hitter when Elijah Dukes led off the Nationals' fifth with a single up the middle. Johnson yielded just one other hit, Nick Johnson's sixth-inning RBI double. Randy Johnson received ample support from his defense. Rowand robbed Nick Johnson, Washington's second batter of the game, by plunging to the turf to snare a sinking liner in left-center field. Second baseman Burriss made a glittering play in the fifth by making a diving stop of Ronnie Belliard's one-hopper up the middle and shoveling the ball from his glove to shortstop Renteria to start a double play. Brian Wilson, who escaped a bases-loaded, two-out jam in the eighth inning by retiring Adam Dunn on a disputed called third strike, pitched the ninth to notch his 13th save and preserve Johnson's triumph. Johnson's triumph marked the culmination of what in some ways has been an unlikely ascent. He didn't record his first Major League victory until he was 25, and he had won only 64 games upon turning 30 in 1993. But, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, Johnson's 236 victories since turning 30 are the fifth-most in Major League history. "I'd say anything's possible as long as you stay healthy and are driven and continue to succeed," Johnson said.
Chris Haft is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
|
Glacier Pilots Select an Alaskan to Lead in 2009
Press Release 11/17/2008, Anchorage Glacier Pilots
The Anchorage Glacier Pilots select Dennis Machado [pronounced – mah-shaw-doe] to lead its baseball team in 2009! Machado has a long history as a player and coach on the Alaska baseball scene. He takes over from Bob Miller - who led the Glacier Pilots to an ABL Championship, Anchorage Mayor’s Cup Award and a trip to the NBC World Series in Wichita during the 2008 season. Jon Dyson, Glacier Pilot’s general manager said, “It was an easy choice for the Pilot’s organization to hire Machado for his first head coaching job! With his experience in Alaska baseball as a player, high school and summer league coach, and in recruiting the top players in the country – it was the right choice at the right time.” As of November 17, Machado has signed 22 players for the Glacier Pilots in 2009!
Machado is currently in his second year as the pitching coach at Cal St-Bakersfield – a Division I program. He was pitching coach for the Peninsula Oilers (Kenai) last summer (2008) when the Oilers overall record was 33-19 and they had the best team ERA (2.31) in the Alaska Baseball League. Other coaching/pitching duties in Alaska for Dennis Machado include American Legion in Kenai from 1994-1997; East High School in Anchorage from 2001-2005; and, Alaska Baseball Academy in 2004-2005. As high school coach, his winning percentage was .844 and his team had two back-to-back state championships; other career events was seeing three of his pitchers drafted, three players receiving Division I scholarships; a starting catcher setting a single season home run record then be drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals. Machado gave commanding performances while in high school sports in Kenai, AK that included baseball, soccer, track, basketball, and football. For four years, he played for the Peninsula Oilers and was with its 1994 team that won the NBC World Series Championship. Additionally, the Montreal Expos in the amateur draft in 1994 drafted him. Dennis Machado, proud dad to a toddler, lives in Santa Maria, CA. At the Pilot’s quarterly meeting last week, the board of directors voted to give a substantial donation to Bucs general manager Dennis Mattingly for his surgery and stay at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center Facility in Seattle, WA. A spaghetti feed is set for this Saturday, Nov. 22 at the Lake Otis School from 5pm-9pm; and, there will be bowling along with a silent auction for Dennis Mattingly on Sunday, Nov. 23 day at the Center Bowl from noon until 2 p.m. Donations may be made at the Alaska USA Federal Credit Union, account #1425535 (MA).
For more information contact Jon Dyson, Glacier Pilot’s General Manager at 274-3627.
|