Lamar Johnson (baseball) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Lamar Johnson |
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| First baseman / Designated hitter | |||
| Born: September 2, 1950 Bessemer, Alabama, U.S. |
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| debut | |||
| May 18, 1974, for the Chicago White Sox | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| October 2, 1982, for the Texas Rangers | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .287 | ||
| Home runs | 64 | ||
| Runs batted in | 381 | ||
| Teams | |||
As player
As coach
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Lamar Johnson Sr. was born on September 2, 1950. He is a retired American baseball player. He also worked as a hitting coach for several major league teams. These teams included the Milwaukee Brewers, Kansas City Royals, Seattle Mariners, and New York Mets.
Lamar played as a first baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1974 to 1982. He played for the Chicago White Sox and the Texas Rangers. Lamar was a right-handed batter and thrower. He stood about 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighed around 215 pounds.
One cool moment happened on June 19, 1977. Before a game, Lamar sang "The Star-Spangled Banner". Later in that same game, he got all three of the White Sox's hits. He hit two home runs and a double. This helped his team win 2-1 against the Oakland A's. He even sang the national anthem a few more times that season!
Lamar Johnson's Coaching Career
Lamar Johnson started his coaching career in 1988. The Milwaukee Brewers hired him as a hitting instructor for their minor league teams. He worked in their minor league system until 1994. During this time, he was the hitting coach for the Denver Zephyrs in 1991 and 1992. He also managed the Stockton Ports in 1993 and 1994.
Coaching in the Major Leagues
In December 1994, Lamar Johnson became the hitting coach for the Brewers' main team. This was under manager Phil Garner. The Brewers' offense improved a lot with Lamar's help. In 1994, they scored only 547 runs. But in 1995, they scored 740 runs. In 1996, they scored a team record of 894 runs! After two more seasons, the Brewers let Lamar go in August 1998.
Just three months later, the Kansas City Royals hired him as their hitting coach. Lamar had great success with the Royals too. In 1998, the Royals scored 714 runs. In 1999, they scored a new team record of 856 runs. Then, in 2000, they broke that record again by scoring 879 runs. This is still the Royals' team record for runs scored. A baseball writer named Joe Posnanski said that player Jermaine Dye improved his swing thanks to Lamar Johnson. Even with this success, Lamar was let go by the Royals after the 2002 season.
In 2003, Lamar Johnson became the hitting coach for the Seattle Mariners. Even though their home stadium was known for being tough on hitters, the Mariners had one of the best offenses in the American League that year. They won 93 games! However, Lamar was not kept on for the 2004 season.
Later Coaching Roles
Since 2005, Lamar Johnson has worked for the Mets organization. He first worked as a traveling hitting instructor. Then he became the minor league hitting coordinator. Under Lamar's guidance, the Mets' minor league system developed many talented young hitters. On April 26, 2011, the Mets' starting lineup was made up entirely of players who had come up through their own system. This was the first time that had happened since 1971.
On May 26, 2014, Lamar Johnson became the new hitting coach for the main Mets team. He took over from Dave Hudgens. He coached for the rest of that season. After the season, he was moved back to being a minor league hitting instructor for the Mets. Kevin Long became the Mets' hitting coach for the 2015 season.
