Larry Johnson

Note: This page is for 1970s catcher Larry Johnson. For other players with similar names, click here.

Larry Doby Johnson

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 185 lb.
• High School East Technical High School
• Debut October 3, 1972
• Final Game May 25, 1978
• Born August 17, 1950 in Cleveland, OH USA
• Died May 26, 2013 in Tampa, FL USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Named after Hall of Famer Larry Doby, catcher Larry Johnson had five cups of coffee in the majors with three different teams, appearing in a dozen big league games.

Selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 9th round of the 1968 amateur draft, Johnson reached the big leagues with the club on October 3, 1972 against the Baltimore Orioles, replacing Ray Fosse as the Tribe's catcher in the 6th inning of the season's final game. He went 1-for-2 and got his first big league hit off Roric Harrison. After spending all of 1973 in the minors, he got into one more game for Cleveland in 1974, appearing as a pinch runner against the California Angels on April 26th and scoring a run.

Prior to the 1975 season, Johnson was traded to the Montreal Expos for Mike Baldwin. He appeared in just one big league game that summer, going 1-for-3 with a double against the New York Mets in his first start in the majors on September 8th. He had his longest major league stint the following season with the Expos, in 1976, getting into 6 games and getting 13 at-bats while Gary Carter was injured in mid-season. In one of the games, on July 9th, he was the starting catcher against the Houston Astros when the Expos were no-hit by Larry Dierker.

After spending the entire 1977 campaign in the minors, Johnson became a free agent and was signed by the Chicago White Sox. He got into three games with the Sox in 1978, making his final big league appearance and getting his final big league hit against the Angels on May 25th. He later played in the Baltimore Orioles and Detroit Tigers organizations.

Ironically, Johnson's namesake was one of his coaches when he played with the Expos in 1976 and again with the White Sox in 1978. During his big league career, he started 7 games, 6 times behind the plate and once as a designated hitter. His highest position in the batting order was 6th.

Johnson is the father of minor leaguer Joshua Johnson.