THE OVERAWING UNDERWHELMER:

Johnson Used to Throw, But Now He Pitches (Thomas Boswell, June 9, 2004, Washington Post)

Everybody talks about getting better at his craft. For 20 years, ever since he showed up in the minor leagues with a fastball that clocked over 100 mph -- usually as it hit the backstop on the fly -- Randy Johnson has actually done it.

When he enters the Hall of Fame someday, testaments will be made to his talent and to the spectacular nights, such as the one last month when he pitched a perfect game in Atlanta. He can thrill the entire sport with his electric, intimidating 6-foot-10 presence.

However, a game like Johnson's 8-1 victory over the Orioles in Camden Yards on Tuesday night shows his most remarkable quality. He wasn't perfect. The Arizona southpaw didn't strike out 10 or more hitters as he already has four times this season, despite being 40 years old. There are still nights when the Big Unit shuts out the Padres on two hits or fans 10 Cubs while walking nobody. But he now has remarkable nights when he is not spectacular at all.

Against the Orioles, Johnson did something that would have seemed inconceivable when he was young, unnecessary in his prime and unlikely now in his dotage. He pitched. With precision, haughty command and veteran guile.

Though his fastball rarely topped 93 mph, the Orioles managed just three singles off him in seven innings, one a bloop, another an infield scratch. After fanning two of the first three hitters he faced, Johnson only struck out two of the next 22. Hard as it is to imagine, Johnson, perhaps the most intimidating pitcher ever, underwhelmed the Orioles for his eighth victory.