No Piazza, but Johnson Has Pizazz Behind Plate

CHICAGO â€”  At 10 Wednesday morning, almost 3 1/2 hours before a game against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field, Charles Johnson is hitting baseballs off a tee under the supervision of Dodger batting coach Reggie Smith. The firm of Johnson & Smith spends an hour on the tee, then another hour in the batting cage under the right-field bleachers.

“Strength, quickness, power,� Smith later says of Johnson’s offensive potential. “He just has to learn to use it so he trusts it.�

Yes, Charles Johnson packed a bat when traded by the Florida Marlins, but it is the glitter from those three Gold Gloves as the National League’s best defensive catcher that most excites the Dodgers, that has pitching coach Glenn Gregson saying such things as, “I’m not ripping Mike Piazza, but. . . ,� and Ramon Martinez saying:

“I don’t have to worry about the runner now or throwing pitches in the dirt. I can just go out and pitch. I have a lot more confidence.�

Potentially, the trade of last Friday filled some critical Dodger needs:

A left-handed threat (Bobby Bonilla) in the middle of the lineup, a run-producing outfielder (Gary Sheffield) and a versatile left-handed hitter (Jim Eisenreich) for the bench.

Johnson, however, looms as the most dependable part of it.

At 26, assuming the Dodgers sign him to a multiyear contract (he was awarded $3.3 million in arbitration this year), he figures to be a long-term bulwark behind the plate--and the key to a trade that wouldn’t have been made without him.

It’s this simple:

If the Dodgers were trading baseball’s best offensive catcher, they insisted on one of baseball’s two best defensive catchers in return--Ivan Rodriguez of the Texas Rangers being unavailable.

“They had to include Johnson for the trade to make sense for us,� club President Bob Graziano said. “I don’t know how we could have gone forward at the catching position without him.�

The Marlins, of course, were and are interested only in reaching their overall financial objectives, depleting a World Series winner to the point of trading their dominant young catcher.

Johnson set a single-season record with no errors in 123 games last year and had a remarkable errorless streak of 172 games broken on opening day of this season. He allowed only one passed ball last year and, in the three seasons before 1998, threw out 41%, 48% and 45% of opposition base stealers compared to 27%, 17% and 23% by Piazza.

“First and foremost,� Gregson said, “his name on the lineup card slows down the opposition’s running game. The pitcher can concentrate totally on the hitter.�

In addition, Gregson said, Johnson has studied catching and worked at it from the time he began playing.

“He knows pitching and he knows the game,� Gregson said. “It’s like having a pitching coach in uniform on the field. The other thing is that Mike [Scioscia] and I have stressed pitcher-catcher communication, and that’s one of this kid’s biggest strengths.�

Before, during and after games, Gregson said.

“I’m not ripping Mike Piazza, but Mike is an offensive catcher who tends to concentrate on his hitting,� Gregson said.

“C.J. is a defensive catcher who realizes that’s his job.

“At the same time, this staff ranked awfully high statistically the last three years, and Mike Piazza deserves a lot of the credit.

“I mean, he was the guy behind the plate.�

Among National League teams, the Dodgers were never lower than second in staff earned-run average the last three years.

An inconsistent rotation hasn’t met 1998 expectations, but Johnson said he considers the talent second only to Atlanta’s.

“I’ve only been here for four games,� he said Wednesday, “so I’m still getting comfortable, still adjusting [to a new staff].

“It’s going to take a while before I’m totally comfortable knowing what to call for and when.�

The trade may have extended Johnson’s career. He was getting battered physically and beaten down mentally by an inexperienced Florida rotation. In an April 7 game against Philadelphia, he handled 213 pitches.

“In that [South Florida] humidity, it’s like catching a doubleheader,� he said. “Playing in the more temperate weather [of Los Angeles] will be a big plus for me, but the opportunity to play for an organization that wants to win is the important thing. Losing is bad. Losing is serious. I missed the music this year and the good time that comes with winning. I just hope no one expects me to fill Piazza’s shoes [offensively]. I can only be myself.�

Johnson hit 19 homers and drove in 63 runs last year, but he was a .241 career hitter before this season and is at .205 after a one-for-14 start with the Dodgers.

“People watch him bust his butt blocking pitches in the dirt and it’s easy to dismiss his hitting by saying that’s not his job, but Charles wants to have fun with the bat,� Smith said.

“He wants to take the same pride with his hitting that he does with his catching.�

Smith said his approach is to change Johnson’s approach, get him thinking positively.

“He’s heard so much about what he can’t do at the plate that we want him to start thinking he can,� Smith said. “It’s unfair to him to put numbers on it, but he has the ability to hit .270 to .280 with 25 or more homers and 70 to 80 RBI. Put that with his catching skills. . . .�

Smith shook his head at the thought, then said, “Who knows? If he works at it in the same way he does his catching, those numbers may be low.�

Johnson works at his catching by practicing footwork three times a week and throwing some 250 feet for 10 minutes almost daily to maintain arm strength.

He has been preparing to catch at this level since he was a toddler in Fort Pierce, Fla., about 20 miles south of the Dodgers’ training base in Vero Beach. His father, Charles, was influential in his development, as was his grandfather, George Wilbert Johnson, who spent 36 years retreading tires in Vero and was friends with many Dodgers, including catcher John Roseboro, whom he recruited for a period to work with his grandson. The young Johnson wanted nothing more than to wear the tools of ignorance, and now many think the Dodgers look smart for acquiring him--no matter how the rest of the trade works out.