Page 183 - 1975 BoSox

176 ’75—THE RED SOX TEAM THAT SAVED BASEBALL
On April 5, 1975, as a free agent, the 36-year-old veteran signed with the White Sox. Chicago GM Roland Hemond said the Red Sox did not need Johnson because Tony Conigliaro had a successful spring comeback and they did not want to stand in the way of Johnson.
In 148 games for the White Sox in 1975, Johnson hit a team-leading 18 home runs and drove in 72 runs. On September 21, after Jim Rice had been hit by a pitch that broke his left hand, the Red Sox acquired Johnson from Chicago for cash and a player to be named later (catcher Chuck Erickson). Johnson’s Red Sox role was to play rst base and serve as designated hitter. He was 6-for-10 in the three games in which he appeared. e Red Sox went to the World Series but Johnson had joined the team too late to be eligible for the Series roster. He played sparingly in 1976 and was released on June 4, after which he retired as a player.
In all or part of 16 major-league seasons, Johnson played in 1,765 games and batted .244 with 245 home runs, 1,447 hits, and 923 RBIs.
A Poway, California, resident, Johnson owned a con- struction company in nearby San Diego and operated a 40-acre cattle ranch. Nevertheless he still maintained his contact with baseball. In 1978 he returned to the Paci c Coast League and piloted Salt Lake City to a 72-65 second-place nish. e club lost in the playo semi nals to Albuquerque.
In 1979 Johnson became a hitting coach for the California Angels. In addition to the Halos (1979-80 and ’89-91), Johnson coached for the Mets (’81), Phillies (’82-84), Mariners (’85-86), and White Sox (’87).
In June 1991 Johnson was diagnosed with lung cancer. After a long ght with the illness, he succumbed on April 23, 1992. He was survived by his wife Lucy Ann, his sons Deron Jr. and Dominick, and a daughter, Dena. He is buried at Dearborn Memorial Park, Poway, California. Over his 28-year baseball life, he told Hall of Fame researchers, his greatest thrills were having played in the 1973 World Series for the Athletics and hitting four home runs in a row for the Phillies in 1971.
Sources
Kelley, Brent P., ey Too Wore Pinstripes ( Je erson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 1998).
Pietrusza, David, Matthew Silverman, and Michael Gershman, eds., Baseball: e Biographical Encyclopedia (Kingston, New York: Total/ Sports Illustrated, 2000).
Porter, David L., ed.. Biographical Dictionary of American Sports: Baseball, Revised and Expanded, Edition G-P (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 2000).
orn, John, Pete Palmer, and Michael Gershman, eds., with Matthew Silverman, Sean Lahman, and Greg Spira, Total Baseball, 7th Edition (Kingston, New York: Total Sports Publishing, 2001).
New York Times, April 25, 1992, 12 (obituary).
San Diego Union-Tribune
National Baseball Hall of Fame library, Deron Johnson le. John Pardon (minor-league information). Baseballlibrary.com
Retrosheet.org
Notes
1 San Diego Union, December 2, 1955.
2 Brent P. Kelley, ey Too Wore Pinstripes ( Je erson, North
Carolina: McFarland & Company, 1998), 94. 3 Brent P. Kelley, 95.
4 Ibid.