As a kid, I remember watching Randy Johnson pitch in spring training in Arizona, before he made the major leagues. The guy could not control where the ball was going, and it was scary. Johnson was uncorking wild pitch after wild pitch, with a hit batsman thrown in every dozen pitches or so for good measure. It's amazing that he was able to harness his incredible power to become the best version of himself.
Absolutely. I left out a little detail that they were playing the Giants at Scottsdale stadium, and being a cocky 14 year old Giants fan I sometimes liked to heckle the opposing players. I remember shouting at Johnson: "Look how tall you are, and you can't even control your own body!" and it cracked up the whole section. I'm happy to say that in this case Randy definitely got the last laugh with a Hall of Fame career, and I certainly do not heckle baseball players any longer. Great piece!@@beauboone5332
I don't think Randy ever got a fair shake in assessments of his tenure with the Yankees. I always seem to see people say things like "Randy sucked as a Yankee." Yeah, he was pretty bad in 2006 when he was dealing with the bad back, but I don't think people appreciated just how important he was to the team's success in 2005. Yeah, he had dealt with inconsistencies, as he had a 5.91 ERA in his 17 losses and no-decisions. However, his other 17 starts were phenomenal, as he put up a 1.94 ERA. More importantly was how he did against the team's biggest rivals. In six starts against the Red Sox he went 5-0 with a no-decision in a game the Yankees lost. The two teams ended the season tied in the standings, and the Yankees got the division win from winning the season series 10-9. It was a margin that was possible thanks to their 5-1 record in Randy's starts against Boston.
I had a ticket to see randy go for his 300th win against the nationals and was so excited to get a chance to watch history but the game was rained out and I couldn't get off for the following game which he pitched and got hiss 300th win and to this day I get angry everytime I think about it...
I was at the game in Chicago where the (eventual champion) White Sox lit him up in the first inning for 6 runs on 4 home runs. It was actually quite sad to see.
I think I got a clip of him smiling in the Yankee dugout. He always had his game face on, he was very serious whenever he pitched. Thanks for the comment and thank you for watching.
That Korean pitcher was 35 years old too. Koo Dae-Sung I think. Only picked up a bat 3 times in his professional career, and he last played in Australia in 2023.
This is a ridiculous comment and flat out wrong. Johnson was one of the top starters in the AL his first season as a Yankee in 2005. He was top 2 among AL pitcher's in strikeouts, WHIP, and WAR, 4th in strikeouts per 9(barely behind top 2 and less than 1 K per 9 behind the leader), and 5th in strikeouts to walk ratio. He carried the Yankees to win the tiebreaker and the AL East against the Red Sox. Seriously, Johnson went 6-0 with a 1.93 ERA his final 8 starts and was 5-0 against the Red Sox. His biggest moment was September 11th, 2005 when he held a powerful Red Sox lineup to 1 hit over 7 shutout innings and struck out 8 with his fastball reaching 99 mph and he had his killer slider. That was one of the great performances of his career in a must-win game 2 days after his 42nd birthday. How about his Yankee debut to open the season against the Boston? Very cold weather, but held them to 1 run and 5 hits. Watch Johnson get ahead of Manny with a couple of 96 mph fastballs and then fire a 97 mph fastball inside to strike him out looking and tell me he was washed up. In the 161st game at Fenway, Johnson didn't have his good stuff but still pitched into the 8th for another huge win. Sure, he had one bad start in the ALDS in bad weather after carrying them to get there, but came back and pitched 4 1/3 scoreless relief innings in the elimination game 2 games later with nothing left. Historically, Johnson was never as good in the division series; look at how he got hammered by St. Louis in 2002 after what Johnson felt was his best season. Excluding the start he left in the 2nd, Johnson had 1.45 ERA in his final 7 starts. Johnson's only struggles that first season were the first 2 months of summer from June 21st to August 21st when he gave up too many home runs on flat sliders because, partially because the AL was much tougher than the NL with Johnson himself noting that there were pretty much no breaks in the AL East. Johnson wasn't nearly as good in 2006, but that was mainly due to consistency with his share of games where he dominated, but too many where he was hit hard. But he was still not "washed up." In his final start as a Yankee in the 2006 ALDS, Johnson came out throwing 98 mph fastballs and 89-90 mph sliders at 43 years old.
As a kid, I remember watching Randy Johnson pitch in spring training in Arizona, before he made the major leagues. The guy could not control where the ball was going, and it was scary. Johnson was uncorking wild pitch after wild pitch, with a hit batsman thrown in every dozen pitches or so for good measure. It's amazing that he was able to harness his incredible power to become the best version of himself.
You got to see a legend perfect his craft. Thanks for the comment and thank you for watching.
Absolutely. I left out a little detail that they were playing the Giants at Scottsdale stadium, and being a cocky 14 year old Giants fan I sometimes liked to heckle the opposing players. I remember shouting at Johnson: "Look how tall you are, and you can't even control your own body!" and it cracked up the whole section. I'm happy to say that in this case Randy definitely got the last laugh with a Hall of Fame career, and I certainly do not heckle baseball players any longer. Great piece!@@beauboone5332
That's an amazing story
Was it tempe diablo? I hit my first home run out a "big league" park.
The hype for Randy before his season in 05 was nuts. Thought he pitched well in 05, father time got the best of him in 06
It will get all of us eventually. Thanks for watching.
Randy's time in NY made Jack McDowell's time there look like a success.
Randy is a legend. He’s a big time photographer now too, so a man with many talents.
He sure is. Thanks for watching.
he attacked a cameraman
Well done video man.
I appreciate your kind words. Thanks for the comment and thank you for watching.
I don't think Randy ever got a fair shake in assessments of his tenure with the Yankees. I always seem to see people say things like "Randy sucked as a Yankee." Yeah, he was pretty bad in 2006 when he was dealing with the bad back, but I don't think people appreciated just how important he was to the team's success in 2005. Yeah, he had dealt with inconsistencies, as he had a 5.91 ERA in his 17 losses and no-decisions. However, his other 17 starts were phenomenal, as he put up a 1.94 ERA. More importantly was how he did against the team's biggest rivals. In six starts against the Red Sox he went 5-0 with a no-decision in a game the Yankees lost. The two teams ended the season tied in the standings, and the Yankees got the division win from winning the season series 10-9. It was a margin that was possible thanks to their 5-1 record in Randy's starts against Boston.
I agree, especially with 211 strikeouts in 05. Thanks for the comment and thank you for watching.
He was 42c by then, what did anyone really expect?
His slider flattened like a pancake and his velocity plummeted from 04-05.
Age will do that to velocity, but he was still throwing 95 in 05. Thanks for the comment and thank you for watching.
@@beauboone5332 I got the year wrong with the velocity. But I do remember his slider not having the same bite and a more 9-3 trajectory.
Randy was da man! Interesting to learn about his time with the yanks
He was the man. Thanks for watching.
I had a ticket to see randy go for his 300th win against the nationals and was so excited to get a chance to watch history but the game was rained out and I couldn't get off for the following game which he pitched and got hiss 300th win and to this day I get angry everytime I think about it...
That’s too bad. Thanks for the comment and thank you for watching.
Blame teams for building outdoor ballparks in places where it is known to rain frequently.
@@RedRaiderLobo20 it's just the luck of the draw
I was at the game in Chicago where the (eventual champion) White Sox lit him up in the first inning for 6 runs on 4 home runs. It was actually quite sad to see.
Best lefty ever.
He just might be. Thanks for watching.
Hands down!
look at Cashman 😭
He’s amazed at the size of the Big Unit. Thanks for the comment, and thank you for watching.
His time with the Yankees was sooo bad I forgot he was a Yankee
He never smiled as a NYY, always seemed miserable. Now he cant stop smiling lol
I think I got a clip of him smiling in the Yankee dugout. He always had his game face on, he was very serious whenever he pitched. Thanks for the comment and thank you for watching.
He sucked in pinstripes - plain and simple his biggest mkiment was giving up a triple to a Mets pitcher from Korea . Johnson was washed in NY
He was older, that’s for sure. Thanks for the comment and thank you for watching.
That Korean pitcher was 35 years old too. Koo Dae-Sung I think. Only picked up a bat 3 times in his professional career, and he last played in Australia in 2023.
This is a ridiculous comment and flat out wrong. Johnson was one of the top starters in the AL his first season as a Yankee in 2005. He was top 2 among AL pitcher's in strikeouts, WHIP, and WAR, 4th in strikeouts per 9(barely behind top 2 and less than 1 K per 9 behind the leader), and 5th in strikeouts to walk ratio. He carried the Yankees to win the tiebreaker and the AL East against the Red Sox. Seriously, Johnson went 6-0 with a 1.93 ERA his final 8 starts and was 5-0 against the Red Sox. His biggest moment was September 11th, 2005 when he held a powerful Red Sox lineup to 1 hit over 7 shutout innings and struck out 8 with his fastball reaching 99 mph and he had his killer slider. That was one of the great performances of his career in a must-win game 2 days after his 42nd birthday. How about his Yankee debut to open the season against the Boston? Very cold weather, but held them to 1 run and 5 hits. Watch Johnson get ahead of Manny with a couple of 96 mph fastballs and then fire a 97 mph fastball inside to strike him out looking and tell me he was washed up. In the 161st game at Fenway, Johnson didn't have his good stuff but still pitched into the 8th for another huge win. Sure, he had one bad start in the ALDS in bad weather after carrying them to get there, but came back and pitched 4 1/3 scoreless relief innings in the elimination game 2 games later with nothing left. Historically, Johnson was never as good in the division series; look at how he got hammered by St. Louis in 2002 after what Johnson felt was his best season. Excluding the start he left in the 2nd, Johnson had 1.45 ERA in his final 7 starts. Johnson's only struggles that first season were the first 2 months of summer from June 21st to August 21st when he gave up too many home runs on flat sliders because, partially because the AL was much tougher than the NL with Johnson himself noting that there were pretty much no breaks in the AL East. Johnson wasn't nearly as good in 2006, but that was mainly due to consistency with his share of games where he dominated, but too many where he was hit hard. But he was still not "washed up." In his final start as a Yankee in the 2006 ALDS, Johnson came out throwing 98 mph fastballs and 89-90 mph sliders at 43 years old.