When in high school, Johnson turned down football scholarships to UCLA and Fresno State to instead play baseball. Johnson was originally drafted by the California Angels in the 13th round of the 1976 June amateur draft, but did not sign. The Fresno State graduate was a first-team All-American selection in 1978 before being drafted by Kansas City in the 24th round, the 595th overall pick. He made his major league debut with the Royals on September 12, 1982. On December 15, 1983, he was traded by Royals to the Expos for Tom Dixon. Johnson played in 22 major league games over parts of three seasons, batting.261 with 12 hits, including two doubles and two runs batted in. He played 830 games in the minor leagues, most of them at the Triple-A level.
Coaching and managerial career
;Kansas City Royals Shortly after his playing days ended in 1985, Johnson became a coach in the Royals' minor league system. He served as a coach within the Kansas City organization for six seasons, before becoming a manager. Johnson made his managerial debut with the Baseball City Royals of the Florida State League in 1992. In 1995, he won Texas LeagueManager of the Year honors after guiding the Wichita Wranglers to the playoffs. In 1998, he reached Triple-A as manager of the Omaha Royals, and in 1999 he led that club to a first-place finish in the Pacific Coast League. Johnson posted six winning seasons in his eight years managing in the Royals' organization. ;Boston Red Sox Johnson joined the Boston Red Sox organization in 2000 as manager of the Sarasota Red Sox of the Florida State League. In 2002, Johnson was promoted to Double-A as manager of the Trenton Thunder of the Eastern League. When the Red Sox switched Double-A affiliations to the Portland Sea Dogs in 2003, he moved with them and was manager of the Sea Dogs for the next two seasons. His 2003 club went 72–70 and missed the Eastern League playoffs by just a game and a half. In 2004, Johnson once again had Portland near.500 for much of the year before finishing at 69–73 and in a tie for 4th-place in the Eastern League Northern Division. From 2005 to 2009, Johnson served as manager for Boston's Triple-A affiliate, the Pawtucket Red Sox. On November 23, 2009, Johnson was appointed as first base coach for the major league Red Sox. He held the post for two seasons, but on October 5, 2011, it was announced that Johnson was dismissed from the Red Sox staff following the departure of manager Terry Francona. ;Baltimore Orioles Johnson was next appointed manager of the Norfolk Tides, Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, and led them to back-to-back winning seasons in 2012 and 2013. In 2015, he managed the Tides to a division title and was named the International League's Manager of the Year. The 2018 campaign marked his seventh consecutive year as Norfolk's manager, and he holds the franchiserecord for games won as a manager. During the year, Johnson was named the winner of the Orioles' Cal Ripken Sr. Player Development Award, but at the close of the season, he was released by the Baltimore organization as it underwent a significant front-office transition amid the departures of general managerDan Duquette and manager Buck Showalter. Johnson's minor league managerial record through 2018 is 1,752–1,770 over 25 seasons.
Personal life
Johnson and his wife, Daphne, have five children. His son Chris was drafted in the 37th round by the Red Sox in June 2003 but instead opted for college; and was later drafted by the Houston Astros. Primarily a third baseman, Chris Johnson spent a dozen years in professional baseball, including all or parts of eight seasons in the majors with five teams. He had a breakout season in as an Atlanta Brave, finishing second in the National League batting race at.321. He also led the Braves in doubles and finished second on the club in hits. Chris spent part of the 2017 season reunited with his father as a member of the Triple-A Tides in the Baltimore organization. Ron Johnson was forced to take an emergency leave from his coaching duties with the Red Sox on August 1, 2010, after his youngest daughter was seriously injured in a horse riding accident. He missed the rest of the season but was able to return to the Red Sox at the outset of spring training in 2011.
