Randy Johnson Is Still Surly

Randy Johnson has always been known as a surly player. He threw behind John Kruk in an all-star game. Then he threw over Larry Walker's head in another all-star game. He told a New York reporter to get out of his face. So you think at the age of 45, Johnson would have calmed down. Not exactly.

Johnson who signed a one-year deal with the San Francisco Giants, threw his first hitting session against Giants batters. When he noticed the batters were not swinging at his pitches he had this little gem.

“Swing the stinking bat!”

I guess he hasn't calmed down. The Giants have needed this attitude for a while now. While Tim Lincecum won the NL Cy Young last year, the rest of the staff needs a swift kick in the pants. Especially Matt Cain and Barry Zito, who have both struggled the last couple of years.

“Randy is known not necessarily as a headhunter, but he’s definitely someone where you take too big of a hack or lean in too far he’ll let you know,” said the Giants right-hander Matt Cain, who at 24 is almost half Johnson’s age. “I want to talk to him about how to take advantage of the inside corner, and not to let hitters dig in.”

This is exactly what the young Giants pitchers needed. Now if they could find a bat for their lineup and get Zito straighten out, they could make a nice little run for the weak NL West.

A Little Off His Fastball But Not The Reputation (NY Times)

And who can forget about this moment: