Randy Johnson has always been known asa stoic man of few words, but he made sure that all six teams he played for during his 22 years in the majorsknew of his gratitude.
Johnson ticked off the teams and people who helped him throughout his pitching career, starting with the firstmajor league team that drafted him out of college,the Montreal Expos, to which he said he was "forever indebted."
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"My minor league career was not stellar.It took me four years in the minor leagues to finally get a call up in 1988 ... I relish that moment getting to pitch in Montreal," Johnson said.
It wasn"t until Johnson was traded to the Mariners in 1989 that his career really took off, a move that he called his "apprenticeshipfor the next 10 years."
Twomonths with the Astros in 1998, during which he went 10-1,set Johnson up for his first tenure with the Diamondbacks, which led him to winning three games in the World Series and becoming co-MVP with Curt Schilling after the team clinched the title.
"Individual accomplishments are great, but in 2001 we had a team that in spring training we were all on the same page and we never deviated or wavered from that," Johnson said. "And that led us tothe World Series against the greatest team of all time, the New York Yankees.
"Those are some very memorable moments there in Arizona. I"m so grateful for everyone I played with and the franchise."
Johnson also thanked the Yankees and the Giants for taking him on, especially while recovering from significant injuries.
Throughout the trades and injuries, Johnson"s main motivation were the baseball fans, whether they were cheering him on orjeering at him.
"If I was a visiting player coming in to pitch against your team, you motivated me by screaming at me," Johnson said. "If you were rooting for me, I wouldrun through a brick wall for you and throw as many pitches as I needed to throw to get that game and get us a victory."
Johnson also made sure to thank the Wounded Warriors Project, an organization he has worked closely with since his 2009 retirement from baseball,and the United States armed services.
Given the nickname "the Big Unit" for his 6-10 frame, Johnson boastsof a 303-166 career record.The five-time Cy Young Award winnerledthe league in strikeouts nine times and recorded 4,875 strikeouts, the most for anyleft-handedpitcher and thesecondmost ever. He"s the oldest pitcher to throw a perfect game at age 40and defeated every major league team at least once.
Source: http://www.sportingnews.com/mlb/story/2015-07-26/baseball-hall-of-fame-2015-randy-johnson-speech-diamondbacks-mariners-mlb-expos-astros
