Barry Johnson

Barry Christopher Johnson

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 4", Weight 200 lb.

• School University of Arizona, Florida State University
• High School Joliet Catholic Academy

• Born August 21, 1969 in Wichita, KS USA
• Died December 17, 2023 in Houston, TX USA

BR Register page

Biographical Information

Barry Johnson pitched in the minors and for the USA National team.

Johnson was drafted by the New York Mets in the 43rd round of the 1987 Amateur Draft out of high school, but he didn't sign. After pitching for two noted baseball programs, he signed with the Montréal Expos in 1991, and he pitched 7 games with a 3.84 ERA for the GCL Expos that season. Johnson then went to the Chicago White Sox organization, and he was 7-5 with a 3.79 ERA for the South Bend White Sox in 1992. He had a solid 0.66 ERA in 18 games with 5 wins against no losses for the Sarasota White Sox in 1993, and he went 2-0 with a 3.32 ERA for the Birmingham Barons. He then notched a save with a 3.23 ERA in 51 appearances in 1994 for the Barons when he was a teammate of Michael Jordan. Among White Sox farmhands, only Steve Gajkowski and Matt Karchner made more appearances. He tied Tom Thobe and Dennis Konuszewski for 7th in the Southern League in that department. He was kicked out of of the White Sox training camp when he refused to be a strikebreaker. He was 7-4 with a 1.85 ERA with Birmingham in 1995. He tied Archie Vazquez for 7th in games pitched in the Pale Hose system.

The Wichita native extended his solid performance in 1996, and he reached AAA after pitching 10 2/3 shutout innings in Birmingham. He was 7-2 with a 2.80 ERA for the Nashville Sounds, then he was 4-1 with a 3.55 ERA for the Sounds in 1997 before moving to the Pittsburgh Pirates system. He was 5-2 with a 4.13 ERA for the Calgary Cannons after changing teams. Despite 9 wins over 48 games in AAA that year, he didn't get called up. Johnson pitched for 3 different system in 1998, and his ERA was 6.94 in 5 games for the Tucson Sidewinders (affiliated with the Arizona Diamondbacks) and 6.63 with a 2-8 record in 31 games for the Oklahoma RedHawks of the Texas Rangers organization. He also went 1-0 with a 3.75 ERA for the Norwich Navigators, which were affiliated with the New York Yankees.

Johnson stayed in the Yankees system in 1999, and he was 6-10 with a 5.02 ERA for the AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons. Only Greg Kubes lost more games by a Phillies minor leaguer but he did not make the leaders in the 1999 IL. He improved to 7-4 with a 2.67 ERA and 3 saves for the Red Barons in 2000, and he went 4-2 with a 4.12 ERA for the Columbus Clippers. Johnson also pitched 8 games with a 4..63 ERA for the Norwich Navigators, and he represented the USA in the 2001 Baseball World Cup. He was 1-0 with no runs in 4 2/3 IP; he beat France's Rémi Lejeune. That was his last season.

Overall, Johnson was 64-44 with a 3.63 ERA and 15 saves, struck out 674 in 423 appearances in 11 seasons as a pro; he had pitched in AAA in six years but never got into a game in MLB.