Michael Keith Johnson (born October 3, 1975) is a Canadian former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

who pitched all or part of five seasons in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB), and also played in

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

(NPB),

KBO League The KBO League (), officially the Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League, is the highest level league of baseball in South Korea. The KBO League was founded with six franchises in 1982 and is the most popular sports league in South Korea. The Kia Tigers ar ...

, and the

Chinese Professional Baseball League The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL; ) is the top-tier professional baseball league in Taiwan. The league was established in 1989 and played the first season in 1990. CPBL eventually absorbed the competing Taiwan Major League in 20 ...

(CPBL).

Career

Johnson was selected by the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

in the

1993 Major League Baseball draft The 1993 Major League Baseball draft began with first round selections on June 3, 1993. Alex Rodriguez was selected first overall by the Seattle Mariners. Other notable draftees included Chris Carpenter, Torii Hunter, Jason Varitek, Scott Rol ...

, then made his MLB debut on April 6, 1997 with the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

going on to play for the Orioles (1997) and

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

(1997–2001). He was a member of the Team Canada baseball team at the 2004 Summer Olympics, where they finished in fourth place in the tournament. Johnson played in the Texas Rangers,

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

, and

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

organizations from 2001 through 2003, before signing with the Expos again in 2004. In 2006, Johnson played with

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

of the independent Atlantic League. In 2007, he played for the

Edmonton Cracker-Cats The Edmonton Capitals, originally the Edmonton Cracker-Cats, were a Canadian professional independent minor league baseball team that played between 2005 and 2011 in several leagues. The Capitals are based in Edmonton, Alberta, and are currently ...

of the Northern League. In 2008, he played for the

CPBL The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL; ) is the top-tier professional baseball league in Taiwan. The league was established in 1989 and played the first season in 1990. CPBL eventually absorbed the competing Taiwan Major League in 2 ...

's La New Bears and won the winningest pitcher and the MVP at the regular season. On March 7, 2009 he pitched again for Canada in the World Baseball Classic against the USA. For the 2009 season, he signed to play for the SK Wyverns in South Korea after an interval of four years, but was dismissed in April having appeared in just two games. He then signed with the

Edmonton Capitals The Edmonton Capitals, originally the Edmonton Cracker-Cats, were a Canadian professional independent minor league baseball team that played between 2005 and 2011 in several leagues. The Capitals are based in Edmonton, Alberta, and are currently ...

of the

Golden Baseball League The Golden Baseball League was an independent baseball league based in San Ramon, California, with teams located in the western United States, western Canada and northwest Mexico. The GBL was not affiliated with Major League Baseball or the orga ...

, for whom he finished the season. He split the 2010 season between the Capitals and

Yuma Scorpions Yuma can refer to: Places * Yuma Desert, desert in southwest U.S. and northwest Mexico ;United States * Yuma County, Arizona ** Yuma, Arizona ** Fortuna Foothills, Arizona ** Marine Corps Air Station Yuma ** United States Army Yuma Proving Ground ...

. He is presently a coaching instructor in Edmonton for the St. Francis Xavier high-school baseball Academy.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Mike 1975 births Living people Baltimore Orioles players Baseball people from Alberta Baseball players at the 2004 Summer Olympics Baseball players at the 2008 Summer Olympics Baseball players at the 2011 Pan American Games Canadian expatriate baseball players in Japan Canadian expatriate baseball players in South Korea Canadian expatriate baseball players in Taiwan Canadian expatriate baseball players in the United States Edmonton Capitals players Edmonton Cracker-Cats players Edmonton Trappers players Fresno Grizzlies players Gulf Coast Blue Jays players Hagerstown Suns players Harrisburg Senators players High school baseball coaches KBO League pitchers Kia Tigers players La New Bears players Las Vegas 51s players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from Canada Medicine Hat Blue Jays players Montreal Expos players Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers Oklahoma RedHawks players Olympic baseball players for Canada Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes players Ottawa Lynx players Pan American Games gold medalists for Canada Pan American Games medalists in baseball SSG Landers players Somerset Patriots players Sportspeople from Edmonton World Baseball Classic players of Canada Yuma Scorpions players 2009 World Baseball Classic players Medalists at the 2011 Pan American Games Canadian expatriate baseball players in Australia Canadian expatriate baseball players in Puerto Rico Leones de Ponce players