Randy Johnson’s photography logo hilariously nods to bird incident originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
A picture of Randy Johnson went viral on Wednesday.
But it wasn’t one from the Hall of Fame pitcher’s playing days.
The photo, which was shared by @sophiekleeman on Twitter, was of Johnson working the sidelines as a photographer at an NFL game.
It turns out, that isn’t actually a recent photo. It’s from back in December 2011 at a Dallas Cowboys versus Arizona Cardinals game.
But the five-time Cy Young winner has indeed turned to photography since his 2010 retirement from Major League Baseball. In fact, according to his Randy Johnson Photography website, photography has been Johnson’s passion dating back to when he was a photojournalism major at USC in the 1980s.
“My career as a Major League Baseball pitcher has been well documented, but what is not as well known is my passion for photography, which began when I studied photojournalism at the University of Southern California from 1983-85,” his website says. “Baseball became my occupation for two decades but my love of photography never left. Following my 2010 retirement, I was able to focus my attention back to this passion.”
Johnson’s photography isn’t just limited to the sports world, either. The 59-year-old has traveled the around the globe capturing images of wildlife in African safaris, historic landmarks like the Colosseum in Rome, and concerts performed by megastars such as Elton John. His work has even been featured in Rolling Stone, and has been used on concert tour programs and posters.
What does the Randy Johnson Photography logo look like?
Johnson has snapped some truly spectacular photos, but the best image on his website may be the logo for Randy Johnson Photography:
Did Randy Johnson kill a bird with a baseball?
Just in case you don’t understand the logo, Johnson infamously killed a bird with a pitch during a March 2001 Diamondbacks-Giants Spring Training game in Arizona. The bird, which was a dove, flew right into the path of a fastball from Johnson after he released it. The bird died from the impact of the near-100-mph pitch.
The odds of that happening were pegged by one University of Colorado associate professor in 2016 at “one in 50 million or so over the past 20 years.”
Where does Randy Johnson fall among the best pitchers of all time?
Johnson is one of just 24 pitchers with at least 300 career wins and stands 22nd on the all-time list with 303 victories. His 4,785 career strikeouts rank second to Nolan Ryan and his five Cy Young Awards are second to Roger Clemens.
Johnson, who played for the Montreal Expos, Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros, Arizona Diamondbacks, New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants over his 22-year career, also won four ERA titles and the World Series MVP award in Arizona’s 2001 championship triumph.
What is Randy Johnson’s nickname?
Johnson, who stands 6-foot-10, is known as “The Big Unit.”
Is Randy Johnson on Twitter?
It does not appear Johnson is on Twitter. But you can follow his photography work at rj51photos.com.