Syl Johnson

Born: 12/31/1900 in Portland, OR, USA

Died: 2/20/1985 in Portland, OR, USA

MLB Debut: 1922-04-24 | Final Game: 1940-09-14

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 5'11" | Weight: 180 lbs

Full name: Sylvester W. Johnson

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Biography

Syl Johnson was a professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1922 to 1940. Born in 1900, Johnson's career unfolded during a transformative period in baseball, marked by the transition from the deadball era to the more offense-oriented phases of the game. Over his 18-year career, he compiled a record of 112 wins and 117 losses, showcasing his resilience and competitiveness on the mound. Johnson's career earned run average (ERA) stood at 4.06, and he recorded a total of 920 strikeouts, reflecting his capability to overpower hitters. Additionally, he notched 43 saves, highlighting his effectiveness in critical game situations. Known for his tenacity and strategic pitching style, Johnson contributed to his teams both as a starter and a reliever, leaving a lasting impact in the world of baseball during his era. His legacy is remembered by fans and historians alike as a testament to the skill and determination of pitchers in the early 20th century.

Career Pitching Statistics

W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA	Pitcher PIV
112	117	542	210	82	11	43	2165.7	2290	977	173	488	920	4.06	0

Career ERA 4.06 vs. league average 4.27 across their career seasons — near league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Year	Team	Lg	W	L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA	Lg ERA	Pitcher PIV
1922	DET	AL	7	3	29	8	3	0	1	97.0	99	40	30	29	3.71	4.18 (+11%)	-1008.6
1923	DET	AL	12	7	37	18	7	0	0	176.3	181	78	47	93	3.98	4.03 (+1%)	1457.0
1924	DET	AL	5	4	29	9	2	0	3	104.0	117	57	42	55	4.93	4.13 (-20%)	-1002.5
1925	DET	AL	0	2	6	0	0	0	0	13.0	11	5	10	5	3.46	4.55 (+24%)	-517.8
1926	STL	NL	0	3	19	6	1	0	1	49.0	54	23	15	10	4.22	4.11 (-3%)	-
1927	STL	NL	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	3.0	3	2	0	2	6.00	—	-
1928	STL	NL	8	4	34	6	2	0	3	120.0	117	52	33	66	3.90	4.13 (+6%)	-
1929	STL	NL	13	7	42	19	12	3	3	182.3	186	73	56	80	3.60	4.60 (+22%)	-
1930	STL	NL	12	10	32	24	9	2	2	187.7	215	97	38	92	4.65	4.80 (+3%)	-
1931	STL	NL	11	9	32	24	12	2	2	186.0	186	62	29	82	3.00	4.10 (+27%)	-
1932	STL	NL	5	14	32	22	7	0	2	164.7	199	90	35	70	4.92	4.13 (-19%)	-
1933	STL	NL	3	3	35	1	0	0	3	84.0	89	40	16	28	4.29	3.86 (-11%)	-
1934	CIN	NL	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	6.7	9	2	0	0	2.70	—	0.0
1934	PHI	NL	5	9	42	10	4	3	3	133.7	122	52	24	54	3.50	4.29 (+18%)	-150.8
1935	PHI	NL	10	8	37	18	8	1	6	174.7	182	69	31	89	3.56	4.35 (+18%)	2154.9
1936	PHI	NL	5	7	39	8	1	0	7	111.0	129	53	29	48	4.30	4.59 (+6%)	164.7
1937	PHI	NL	4	10	32	15	4	0	3	138.0	155	77	22	46	5.02	4.34 (-16%)	-2143.3
1938	PHI	NL	2	7	22	6	2	0	0	83.0	87	39	11	21	4.23	4.35 (+3%)	1555.9
1939	PHI	NL	8	8	22	14	6	0	2	111.0	112	47	15	37	3.81	4.28 (+11%)	791.8
1940	PHI	NL	2	2	17	2	2	0	2	40.7	37	19	5	13	4.20	4.21 (avg)	-448.9

Career Batting Statistics

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	PIV
542	702	51	127	18	5	4	53	1	23	214	0.181	0.209	0.238	0.447	-2240.8

Career AVG .181 vs. league average .280 across their career seasons — 35.5% below league average.

Career OBP .209 vs. league average .344 across their career seasons — 39.2% below league average.

Career SLG .238 vs. league average .397 across their career seasons — 40.0% below league average.

Career OPS 0.447 vs. league average 0.740 across their career seasons — 39.6% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Year	Team	Lg	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	AVG	Lg AVG	Lg OBP	Lg SLG	Lg OPS	PIV
1922	DET	AL	29	36	5	8	0	1	0	1	0	0	10	0.222	—	—	—	—	0.0
1923	DET	AL	37	62	6	10	1	2	1	5	0	1	19	0.161	.282 (-43%)	.344 (-46%)	.390 (-26%)	.734 (-35%)	-404.7
1924	DET	AL	29	34	1	7	2	0	0	3	0	2	6	0.206	—	—	—	—	0.0
1925	DET	AL	6	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1926	STL	NL	19	12	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	0.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1927	STL	NL	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000	—	—	—	—	0.0
1928	STL	NL	34	38	5	6	1	0	0	1	0	3	18	0.158	—	—	—	—	0.0
1929	STL	NL	42	60	4	7	2	1	1	5	0	1	23	0.117	.289 (-60%)	.353 (-63%)	.415 (-44%)	.769 (-53%)	-599.6
1930	STL	NL	32	70	9	15	4	0	0	5	1	4	28	0.214	.293 (-27%)	.354 (-28%)	.429 (-37%)	.784 (-33%)	-419.1
1931	STL	NL	32	60	4	14	2	1	0	7	0	3	16	0.233	.276 (-16%)	.338 (-20%)	.388 (-23%)	.726 (-22%)	-229.6
1932	STL	NL	32	51	0	10	1	0	0	5	0	0	13	0.196	.275 (-29%)	.335 (-42%)	.391 (-45%)	.726 (-43%)	-377.3
1933	STL	NL	35	21	0	5	0	0	0	1	0	0	4	0.238	—	—	—	—	0.0
1934	CIN	NL	2	2	1	1	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0.500	—	—	—	—	0.0
1934	PHI	NL	42	41	8	8	1	0	0	3	0	3	13	0.195	—	—	—	—	0.0
1935	PHI	NL	37	58	6	14	2	0	1	7	0	2	12	0.241	.279 (-14%)	.342 (-22%)	.399 (-18%)	.742 (-20%)	-210.3
1936	PHI	NL	39	36	1	9	1	0	0	3	0	0	7	0.250	—	—	—	—	0.0
1937	PHI	NL	32	48	1	7	1	0	0	3	0	0	15	0.146	—	—	—	—	0.0
1938	PHI	NL	22	29	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	10	0.034	—	—	—	—	0.0
1939	PHI	NL	22	33	0	5	0	0	0	2	0	2	11	0.152	—	—	—	—	0.0
1940	PHI	NL	17	8	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0.000	—	—	—	—	0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
7	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0.000

Playoff Batting by Year

Year	Round	Team	G	AB	SO	AVG
1931	WS	SLN	3	2	2	0.000
1930	WS	SLN	2	0	0	.000
1928	WS	SLN	2	0	0	.000

Playoff Career Pitching

W	L	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
0	1	7	1	0	16.0	18	8	5	11	4.50

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year	Round	Team	L	G	GS	IP	H	ER	BB	SO	ERA
1931	WS	SLN	1	3	1	9.0	10	3	1	6	3.00
1930	WS	SLN	0	2	0	5.0	4	4	3	4	7.20
1928	WS	SLN	0	2	0	2.0	4	1	1	1	4.50

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position	G	GS	PO	A	E	DP
P	542	0	63	291	13	13

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year	Team	Pos	G	PO	A	E	DP
1922	DET	P	29	3	17	2	0
1923	DET	P	37	5	17	1	0
1924	DET	P	29	2	17	0	0
1925	DET	P	6	2	4	0	0
1926	SLN	P	19	0	10	0	1
1927	SLN	P	2	1	0	0	0
1928	SLN	P	34	3	20	1	2
1929	SLN	P	42	5	19	1	0
1930	SLN	P	32	4	21	1	1
1931	SLN	P	32	3	24	3	2
1932	SLN	P	32	3	30	0	1
1933	SLN	P	35	1	12	0	0
1934	CIN	P	2	0	0	0	0
1934	PHI	P	42	5	10	1	1
1935	PHI	P	37	6	20	2	1
1936	PHI	P	39	4	13	0	0
1937	PHI	P	32	8	25	1	2
1938	PHI	P	22	2	9	0	0
1939	PHI	P	22	3	17	0	1
1940	PHI	P	17	3	6	0	1