So many great pitchers in 2009! Lincecum, Carpenter, Cain, Kershaw in the NL, and then you have pitchers like Beckett and Verlander in the AL. But what about Josh Johnson? With an ERA in the 2s and a consistently dominant season, Johnson gets little due for what he's become.
Perhaps the most impressive fact about Johnson's performance this season is the fact that he had Tommy John surgery just last season, a condition known to virtually end the careers of many. Not only has Johnson found his old form, but he's vastly exceeded it, and the Marlins are contenders in 2009 largely due to Johnson's success.
As he gets little media coverage and you rarely hear his name mentioned on ESPN, more active fans of baseball will be aware of his status; more casual fans may not know much about him though.
Having been drafted straight out of high school seven years ago, expectations were always high for Johnson, who spent three years in the Marlins' farm system before finally being called up to the majors during the last month of the 2005 baseball season. Johnson got off to a nice start, with four respectable outings.
2006 was even better for Johnson, who finished the season with a 3.10 ERA and 12 wins. Johnson had started out the season as a reliever, but ended as a starter, and nearly finished with the league's best ERA. He nearly won rookie of the year too.
Then, in 2007, everything went the other way. In 4 starts, he went 0-3, with a 7.47 ERA. In August after struggling with his elbow for most of the year, he got Tommy John ligament-replacement surgery. In rehab, things went surprisingly fast. He was able to return a swift, 11 months after the surgery, right back into the Marlins rotation on July 10, 2008.
The rest? It's history. Tonight, Johnson got another great start, going 7.1 innings, giving up only one hit, one earned run, and racking up 11 Ks. With a Mid-90s fastball, a strong slider, and a solid change-up, and being an imposing 6'7'' he's a huge reason for the Marlins being in contention.
Johnson has been the most valuable Marlins pitcher this season, and quite possibly the most valuable player - though with Hanley Ramirez on your team, it's hard to definitively say that. Where he goes from here will be interesting, but with Johnson's talent, he may very well get better.
Perhaps the most impressive fact about Johnson's performance this season is the fact that he had Tommy John surgery just last season, a condition known to virtually end the careers of many. Not only has Johnson found his old form, but he's vastly exceeded it, and the Marlins are contenders in 2009 largely due to Johnson's success.
As he gets little media coverage and you rarely hear his name mentioned on ESPN, more active fans of baseball will be aware of his status; more casual fans may not know much about him though.
Having been drafted straight out of high school seven years ago, expectations were always high for Johnson, who spent three years in the Marlins' farm system before finally being called up to the majors during the last month of the 2005 baseball season. Johnson got off to a nice start, with four respectable outings.
2006 was even better for Johnson, who finished the season with a 3.10 ERA and 12 wins. Johnson had started out the season as a reliever, but ended as a starter, and nearly finished with the league's best ERA. He nearly won rookie of the year too.
Then, in 2007, everything went the other way. In 4 starts, he went 0-3, with a 7.47 ERA. In August after struggling with his elbow for most of the year, he got Tommy John ligament-replacement surgery. In rehab, things went surprisingly fast. He was able to return a swift, 11 months after the surgery, right back into the Marlins rotation on July 10, 2008.
The rest? It's history. Tonight, Johnson got another great start, going 7.1 innings, giving up only one hit, one earned run, and racking up 11 Ks. With a Mid-90s fastball, a strong slider, and a solid change-up, and being an imposing 6'7'' he's a huge reason for the Marlins being in contention.
Johnson has been the most valuable Marlins pitcher this season, and quite possibly the most valuable player - though with Hanley Ramirez on your team, it's hard to definitively say that. Where he goes from here will be interesting, but with Johnson's talent, he may very well get better.
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