Hiroshima Carp Sign DJ Johnson

Oct. 25: The Rockies have formally announced Johnson’s release, and the Hiroshima Carp have correspondingly announced the signing of Johnson to a one-year contract.

Oct. 23: The Rockies have released right-hander DJ Johnson to allow him to pursue an opportunity in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, MLB.com’s Thomas Harding reports (Twitter links). It’s not yet known with which NPB club Johnson will sign.

A native of Beaverton, Oregon, Johnson ground his way through parts of eight minor league seasons before ultimately earning a call to the Colorado pen in 2018. A September cup of coffee in ’18 preceded a longer look in 2019, during which the 6’4″ righty logged a 5.04 ERA (4.45 FIP) across 25 innings of relief for the Rockies. Johnson struggled to prevent runs on the whole, and free passes were something of a bugaboo (6.84 BB/9), but he did notch 24 strikeouts in his 25 innings of work (all while featuring one of the 2019 season’s best beards, it should be noted).

In a minor league career that stretched 313 games in the Rays, Diamondbacks, Twins, Angels, and Rockies organizations, Johnson has compiled a 3.81 ERA with 442 strikeouts in 406 innings of work.