The Big Unit Stands Down

One of the best pitchers in Major League Baseball history, Randy Johnson, announced his retirement today at age 46 years old after an illustrious, first-ballot-Hall-of-Fame career.

The southpaw’s career started on September 15, 1988 for the Montreal Expos and ended on October 4, 2009 for the San Francisco Giants. During that span he also played for the Mariners, Astros, Diamondbacks, and Yankees. The only other pitcher in MLB history with more strikeouts is Nolan Ryan.

Congratulations on a phenomenal career, Randy. (AP Photo/Steve Nesius)

Some other notables from Johnson’s Wikipedia page:

* 5x Cy Young Award winner: (1995, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002)
* 10x All-Star selection: (1990, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004)
* World Series champion and co-MVP in 2001
* Led AL in ERA in 1995
* Led NL in ERA in 1999, 2001, and 2002
* Led NL in wins in 2002
* Led NL in innings pitched in 1999 and 2002
* Led AL in strikeouts in 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995
* Led NL in strikeouts in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004
* Pitched a no-hitter on June 2, 1990 against the Detroit Tigers
* Pitched a perfect game on May 18, 2004 against the Atlanta Braves
* Second All-time in strikeouts with 4,875.
* Became the 24th pitcher in MLB history to win 300 games on June 4, 2009 against the Washington Nationals
* First member of the 300 win club to defeat every MLB team at least once

The Last Two Decades (minimum 1,500 IP; compiled by ESPN)

90s

Wins – 4th
ERA – 3rd
Ks – 1st
CG – 2nd
Shutouts – 1st

2000s

Wins – 2nd
ERA – 3rd
Ks – 1st
CG – 3rd
Shutouts – 2nd

Many will claim that Lefty Grove and Warren Spahn are the best left handed pitchers in MLB history with Johnson coming in at 3. In my mind, Johnson pitched in a tougher era and his legacy is more impressive. He was inconsistent through some seasons, but he was the most feared pitcher in the game for more than a decade and was the second best power pitcher of all time, only behind the aforementioned Ryan.

Congratulations Randy, on an absolute astonishing career. I’m happy to say that I got to see you play, and will certainly be telling my grandchildren stories about you one day.

Finally, aside from this video of you facing Kruk in the All Star Game, this might be the most memorable video clip you provided for us. Amazing.