Davey Johnson

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Lore & Background

Johnson was a full-time starter in the major leagues for the next eight seasons, averaging over 142 games played in a season. He reached the World Series with the Orioles in 1966, 1969, 1970, and 1971, winning World Series rings in 1966 and 1970. He also won the AL Gold Glove Award the final three seasons. Orioles shortstop Mark Belanger won the award as well in 1969 and 1971, making them one of the few middle infield duos to have won the honor in the same season. Third baseman Brooks Robinson also was in the middle of his record 16 straight Gold Glove streak when Johnson and Belanger won their awards.

In Their Own Story

The 1969 season saw Johnson win the AL Gold Glove alongside shortstop Mark Belanger, creating one of the few middle-infield duos to earn the honor in the same year. That year, along with 1970 and 1971, he helped lead the Orioles to four American League pennants. However, his tenure ended due to a roster shift; upset after being replaced as the starting second baseman by Bobby Grich, Johnson was traded on December 1, 1972. The deal sent him along with Pat Dobson, Johnny Oates, and Roric Harrison to the Atlanta Braves in exchange for Earl Williams and Taylor Duncan.

Reader's Guide

Johnson was a mathematics major at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, and was among the first Major League managers to apply computer-based statistical analysis to decision-making, an approach which later became known as sabermetrics. After retiring as a player, he became a successful manager. He led the New York Mets to the 1986 World Series title, and to an additional National League East title in 1988. He won the American League's Manager of the Year Award in 1997, when he led the Baltimore Orioles wire-to-wire to the American League East division championship. He won the same award in the National League in 2012, when he led the Washington Nationals to the franchise's first division title since they moved to Washington, D.C., and its first overall since 1981. Johnson managed teams to their respective League Championship Series in three consecutive years – the Cincinnati Reds in 1995 and the Orioles in both 1996 and 1997. He also briefly managed the Los Angeles Dodgers. He led the United States national team at the 2009 World Baseball Classic, earning fourth place.

Did You Know?

• Johnson hit 42 home runs as a second baseman in 1973, tying Rogers Hornsby's record for most single-season home runs by a second baseman, and hit a 43rd as a pinch-hitter.
• In 1978, Johnson became the first major leaguer to hit two grand slams as a pinch-hitter in a single season.
• Johnson is the winningest manager in Mets history and was inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame on August 1, 2010.