Social media was thrilled to learn that MLB legend Randy Johnson is still working in the professional sports industry. In a different capacity, of course.
On Wednesday afternoon, Sophie Kleeman of Business Insider posted a photo of Johnson working as an NFL photographer from the sideline.
The news caught social media by surprise. Here is a look at some of the best reactions from the Twitter world.
Johnson runs his own photography business, which is called “Randy Johnson Photography.” He does photography shoots for sports, wild life and concerts. On the company’s website, Johnson notes that he studied photojournalism during his college days at USC.
The 59-year-old Johnson last played for the San Francisco Giants in 2009 (his age-45/46 season). The 10-time All-Star was renowned for his 6-foot-10 frame and his signature fastball that reached the 100s.
Johnson won a World Series championship with the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2001 season, leading them to an upset over the dynastic New York Yankees. Johnson was named the World Series MVP. He also took home one AL Cy Young and four NL Cy Young awards, winning the latter four years in a row from 1999 to 2002.
A model of consistency, Johnson was a franchise-changer for the Montreal Expos, the Seattle Mariners, the Houston Astros and the Diamondbacks. He led the National League in strikeouts nine times and led the league in ERA four times.
Johnson retired after the 2009 season with 303 career wins against 166 losses with 4,875 strikeouts and an ERA of 3.29. Only fellow Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan holds more career strikeouts than Johnson (5,714), though the former pitched 1250.9 more career innings. Johnson’s 303 victories also place him 22nd all time.
In 2015, Johnson was formally inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. His jersey number 51 was retired by the Diamondbacks that same year.
