What years did John Henry Johnson play?

John Henry Johnson played in Major League Baseball from 1978 to 1987.

Was John Henry Johnson a pitcher?

Yes. John Henry Johnson pitched in the major leagues, recording 26 wins and 407 strikeouts.

What was John Henry Johnson's career ERA?

John Henry Johnson finished with a 3.90 career ERA, going 26-33 with 407 strikeouts.

How many strikeouts did John Henry Johnson have?

John Henry Johnson recorded 407 career strikeouts.

Is John Henry Johnson in the Hall of Fame?

No. John Henry Johnson has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

What teams did John Henry Johnson play for?

John Henry Johnson played for the Athletics, the Texas Rangers, the Boston Red Sox, and the Milwaukee Brewers.

John Henry Johnson

Pitcher · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1978-1987)

John Henry Johnson was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1978 to 1987 for 4 teams, including the Athletics, a span of 10 seasons. Across 214 career appearances, he went 26-33 with a 3.90 ERA and 407 strikeouts.

W (Wins):: Games credited to a pitcher whose team took a lead it never surrendered while he was the pitcher of record.
ERA (Earned Run Average):: Earned runs allowed per nine innings pitched: (ER × 9) ÷ IP. The primary measure of pitching effectiveness.
SO (Strikeouts):: For a batter, times retired on a third strike; for a pitcher, batters retired on a third strike.
WHIP (Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched):: Baserunners allowed per inning: (BB + H) ÷ IP. Under 1.00 is elite.

Data updated October 12, 2026

W–L 26–33

ERA 3.90

WHIP 1.39

SO 407

Pitcher PIV -756.5

Position: Pitcher
Bats / Throws: L / L
Height / Weight: 6'2" / 190 lb
Born: 8/21/1956 in Houston, TX, USA
MLB Debut: 1978-04-10
Last Game: 1987-06-29

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Career Pitching Statistics

John Henry Johnson — Career Pitching Statistics
W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	Pitcher PIV
26	33	214	61	9	2	9	602.2	585	261	60	250	407	3.90	-756.5

Career ERA 3.90 vs. league average 3.90 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Pitching Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

John Henry Johnson Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA	Lg ERA	Pitcher PIV
1978	OAK	AL	11	10	33	30	7	2	0	186.0	164	70	82	91	3.39	3.69 (+8%)	-2325.1
1979	OAK	AL	2	8	14	13	1	0	0	84.2	89	41	36	50	4.36	4.00 (-9%)	-1812.1
1979	TEX	AL	2	6	17	12	1	0	0	82.1	79	45	36	46	4.92	4.00 (-23%)	-1761.2
1980	TEX	AL	2	2	33	0	0	0	4	38.2	27	10	15	44	2.33	3.84 (+39%)	1414.3
1981	TEX	AL	3	1	24	0	0	0	2	23.2	19	7	6	8	2.66	3.58 (+26%)	-193.2
1983	BOS	AL	3	2	34	1	0	0	1	53.1	58	22	20	51	3.71	3.87 (+4%)	1506.1
1984	BOS	AL	1	2	30	3	0	0	1	63.2	64	25	27	57	3.53	3.81 (+7%)	212.5
1986	ML4	AL	2	1	19	0	0	0	1	44.0	43	13	10	42	2.66	3.97 (+33%)	2039.9
1987	ML4	AL	0	1	10	2	0	0	0	26.1	42	28	18	18	9.57	4.29 (-123%)	162.3
Career · 9 seasons			26	33	214	61	9	2	9	602.2	585	261	250	407	3.90	—	-757

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Career Batting Statistics

John Henry Johnson — Career Batting Statistics
G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
215	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	.000	.000	.000	0

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

John Henry Johnson Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year	Team	Lg	G	AVG	Lg AVG	Lg OBP	Lg SLG	Lg OPS	PIV
1978	OAK	AL	34	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1979	OAK	AL	14	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1979	TEX	AL	17	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1980	TEX	AL	33	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1981	TEX	AL	24	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1983	BOS	AL	34	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1984	BOS	AL	30	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1986	ML4	AL	19	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1987	ML4	AL	10	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
Career · 9 seasons			215	—	—	—	—	—	0

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (429 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

John Henry Johnson — Batting — Home / Away
Split	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG
Home	102	0	0	0	0	0	—
Away	113	0	0	0	0	0	—

Pitching — Home / Away

John Henry Johnson — Pitching — Home / Away
Split	G	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
Home	101	326.1	310	123	122	214	3.39
Away	113	276.1	275	138	128	193	4.49

Last 10 Games — Pitching

John Henry Johnson — Last 10 Games — Pitching
Date	Tm	Opp	Dec	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR
1987-06-29	MIL	DET	—	3.2	9	5	5	2	1	0
1987-06-22	MIL	BOS	L	2.0	6	4	4	2	0	1
1987-06-17	MIL	MIN	—	4.1	7	4	4	2	2	0
1987-06-10	MIL	DET	—	5.0	1	0	0	2	5	0
1987-06-05	MIL	NYY	—	0.2	7	7	5	2	2	0
1987-05-28	MIL	MIN	—	3.2	1	1	1	3	1	0
1987-05-16	MIL	KCR	—	1.2	3	3	3	1	2	0
1987-05-12	MIL	OAK	—	3.0	3	2	2	2	4	0
1987-05-09	MIL	SEA	—	2.0	5	2	2	0	1	0
1987-04-13	MIL	BAL	—	0.1	0	2	2	2	0	0

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

John Henry Johnson — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
P	214	61	18	67	6	5

Season-by-Season Fielding

John Henry Johnson — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year	Team	Pos	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
1978	OAK	P	33	30	8	16	4	0
1979	OAK	P	14	13	4	7	0	2
1979	TEX	P	17	12	1	11	0	1
1980	TEX	P	33	0	0	5	0	0
1981	TEX	P	24	0	1	7	0	1
1983	BOS	P	34	1	2	5	1	0
1984	BOS	P	30	3	0	8	0	0
1986	ML4	P	19	0	2	3	1	0
1987	ML4	P	10	2	0	5	0	1

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

John Henry Johnson Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position	Games
Pitcher	214
Designated Hitter	1

Salary History

John Henry Johnson — Salary History
Year	Team	League	Salary
1986	ML4	AL	$60,000
Total Career Earnings			$60,000

Most Similar Players

Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.

Career Spans

John Henry Johnson (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

John Henry Johnson: the record in brief

The profile opens with John Henry Johnson's first major league game on April 10, 1978; the last one listed came on June 29, 1987. By club, Johnson's seasons break down as the Oakland Athletics (1978 to 1979), the Texas Rangers (1979 through 1981), the Boston Red Sox (1983 to 1984), and the Milwaukee Brewers (1986 to 1987). Johnson played primarily as a pitcher and threw and hit left-handed. The bio adds a birth date on August 21, 1956, in Houston, TX, USA and a listed size of 6 feet, 2 inches and 190 pounds.

Johnson pitched in 214 games, starting 61, and finished with a 26-33 record and 3.90 ERA. Johnson had 407 strikeouts. Johnson's 3.90 ERA was close to the 3.90 league figure for those seasons. The best win total was 11, in 1978. Among the heaviest workloads, the lowest ERA was 3.39 in 1978, when the league's was 3.69.

Most of Johnson's defensive work, 214 games, came at pitcher; the rest of the position table shows designated hitter (1). On the mound, the fielding record shows 6 errors alongside 18 putouts and 67 assists.

The one salary on file is $60,000, for 1986. The game-log section draws on 429 games of Retrosheet box scores for Johnson.

The closest statistical comparisons on the page are Mike Paul, Clay Hensley, and Ray Corbin.

Frequently Asked Questions about John Henry Johnson

What years did John Henry Johnson play?: John Henry Johnson played in Major League Baseball from 1978 to 1987.
Was John Henry Johnson a pitcher?: Yes. John Henry Johnson pitched in the major leagues, recording 26 wins and 407 strikeouts.
What was John Henry Johnson's career ERA?: John Henry Johnson finished with a 3.90 career ERA, going 26-33 with 407 strikeouts.
How many strikeouts did John Henry Johnson have?: John Henry Johnson recorded 407 career strikeouts.
Is John Henry Johnson in the Hall of Fame?: No. John Henry Johnson has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
What teams did John Henry Johnson play for?: John Henry Johnson played for the Athletics, the Texas Rangers, the Boston Red Sox, and the Milwaukee Brewers.