Despite a less-than-pretty statline, scouts are still bullish on Johnson as an athletic left-hander who has yet to focus on pitching full-time. He has as many as five pitches to work with, starting with a fastball that averaged a touch over 93 mph but topped out at 97-98 mph this spring, and it some ride to it when he’s at the top of the zone. His slider, thrown up to 83-84 mph, can be a 1-to-7, hammer-like breaker with a ton of swing and miss. He has a distinct upper-70s curve and can also throw a harder, 86-88 mph cutter. He used his low-80s changeup more than any other secondary pitch, throwing it downhill with armside sink and run, a cambio he’ll throw to hitters on both sides of the plate. Johnson has never been a consistent strike-thrower, carrying a career 4.6 BB/9 (5.1 per nine in 2026) rate into NCAA Regional play this year. But there are some raw ingredients to work with, and there were teams who felt he was worthy of top five round consideration, with perhaps another gear to reach when he puts the bat down for good.
[MLB Pipeline – 150]
He’s an easy mover on the mound with a strong and muscular 6-foot-1, 205-pound frame. Johnson sits around 93-94 with his fastball and touches 97, and while he’s a fringy strike-thrower overall he tends to do a nice job establishing the fastball in the zone for strikes. He has lots of confidence in a mid-80s changeup that is more of a weak-contact offering than a true swing-and-miss pitch, but he’ll keep hitters off-balance with it, throw it in any count and to both lefties and righties. Johnson gets most of his whiffs with a slurvy breaking ball in the 78-83 mph range that varies in shape. He’ll also mix in an occasional mid-to-upper-80s cutter.
[Baseball America – 141]
