Lou Johnson

Louis Brown Johnson (September 22, 1934 – October 1, 2020), nicknamed "Sweet Lou," was an American Major League Baseball outfielder. Johnson's professional baseball career lasted for 17 seasons, and included 8 years in the majors: parts of 1960–1962 and 1965, and then the full seasons of 1966 through 1969. He threw and batted right-handed and was listed as tall and .

Johnson did not establish himself as a big-league regular until he was almost 31 years old. He had trials with the Chicago Cubs (34 games played in 1960), Los Angeles Angels (only one appearance in 1961), and Milwaukee Braves (61 games in 1962). Only after he was summoned to the Los Angeles Dodgers from Triple-A Spokane, when the Dodgers lost regular outfielder Tommy Davis to a broken ankle on May 1, 1965, did Johnson earn a foothold in the major leagues. He became the Dodgers' regular left fielder during their 1965 world championship season, started over 60 games in both left and right fields in 1966 (during which the Dodgers captured their second straight National League pennant), and started another 85 games in the Dodger outfield in 1967.

Early life Johnson was born on September 22, 1934, in Lexington, Kentucky, to Sidney Bell and Shirley Johnson. He had three brothers and one sister.

Johnson attended Dunbar High School in Lexington where he played both basketball and baseball.

Early baseball career

Johnson was signed by the New York Yankees as an amateur free agent in 1953. After moving around from team to team in the minor leagues for about eight years, he made his major league debut with the Chicago Cubs in 1960.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Johnson made it back to the major leagues to stay for a stretch beginning in 1965 with the Dodgers when a broken ankle in early May sidelined Tommy Davis, their regular left fielder, for the remainder of the season. Johnson filled in for Davis, playing in 130 games for the Dodgers that season, recording a .260 batting average, 57 runs scored, and 58 runs batted in (RBIs).

The Dodgers made it to the 1965 World Series versus the Minnesota Twins, and in this Series, Johnson had eight hits, including two home runs, the second one being the game-winning one in the decisive seventh game.

With Tommy Davis back in left field, and Willie Davis in center field, Johnson played mostly in right field in 1966. Frequently batting third in the order, right ahead of tough hitter Tommy Davis, Johnson set career highs by playing in 152 games, getting 526 at-bats, 143 hits, 17 home runs, scoring 71 runs, with 73 RBIs. Johnson's batting average that season was .272, and the Dodgers made it to the World Series once again. Johnson finished the series with four hits in 15 at-bats and flew out to Paul Blair for the final out of the Series. He was interred at Inglewood Park Cemetery.