Johan Camargo was born in Panama City, Panama, on December 13, 1993. His parents named him after the footballer Johan Cruyff. When playing baseball as a child, Camargo naturally batted and threw left handed. His father taught him to throw with his right hand, and Camargo stopped using his left hand for that skill. He later focused on switch-hitting, and joined his first organized baseball league at the age of 13.
Career
Minor leagues
Camargo signed with the Atlanta Braves for $42,000 as a 16-year old out of Panama in July 2010. After missing the 2011 season, Camargo made his professional debut in 2012 with the DSL Braves. Camargo spent 2013 with Rookie level Danville, and hit.294 in 57 games. Camargo began 2014 at Single-A Rome before earning a late season promotion to High-A Lynchburg. Across both levels in 2014, he hit.266 with 46 RBI in 132 games. Camargo spent 2015 with High-A Carolina, hitting.258 with 32 RBI in 130 games. After earning All-Star honors in the Carolina League, Camargo was awarded with a spot in the Arizona Fall League with Peoria. Almost exclusively a shortstop, Camargo began 2016 playing at second base for Double-A Mississippi to accommodate the likes of Ozzie Albies and Dansby Swanson. When all three were on the team, Camargo played third base, and after Swanson was promoted to the major leagues, he took over at shortstop. At the plate, Camargo hit.267 with a career-high 4 HR, along with 43 RBI in 126 games. The Braves added him to their 40-man roster after the season.
Major leagues
After missing out on the Opening Day roster, Camargo was quickly recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett on April 11, 2017, and made his debut that night. After two short-lived stints in the major leagues, Camargo's playing time increased in the month of June when third basemanAdonis García was placed on the disabled list. Camargo hit his first career home run on July 9, against Washington Nationals pitcher Matt Grace. After Adonis Garcia returned from the disabled list at third base, Camargo lost playing time, however, he quickly gained it back when the Braves benched Dansby Swanson who eventually was demoted to Triple A. Camargo was injured in August, and remained with the Gwinnett Braves until September, resulting in the return of Swanson. Camargo became the Braves' starting third baseman in May 2018, and retained the role until the start of the 2019 season, when the team signed Josh Donaldson. Following an injury to starting shortstop Dansby Swanson, Camargo played at that position, struggling defensively and offensively. As a result, Camargo was demoted to the Gwinnett Stripers on August 16. Camargo returned to the major leagues when rosters expanded in September. In a game against the Philadelphia Phillies on September 11, he suffered a hairline fracture in his right shin. The Braves subsequently placed Camargo on the 10-day injured list. In 2019, he had the slowest sprint speed of all major league shortstops, at 25.6 feet/second.
