The Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday traded infielder Micah Johnson to the Atlanta Braves in exchange for cash considerations or a player to be named later. Johnson was designated for assignment on Tuesday to create room for Kenley Jansen on the 40-man roster.
Johnson was acquired from the Chicago White Sox in December 2015 as part of a three-team trade. The Dodgers also received Frankie Montas and Trayce Thompson from the White Sox, and now only Thompson remains in the organization.
Johnson began last season with Triple-A Oklahoma City, though joined the Dodgers on April 9 when Carl Crawford was placed on the disabled list.
The speedy infielder appeared in two games off the bench, going 0-for-3, and was optioned to OKC on April 11. He then didn’t rejoin the Dodgers until active rosters expanded in September.
Over 120 games with Oklahoma City, Johnson hit .261/.321/.356 with 23 doubles, five home runs, 37 RBI and 26 stolen bases (37 attempts; 70 percent success rate). Johnson ended the regular season on a four-game hitting streak, which he extended to 13 games during Oklahoma City’s playoff run.
He was 15-for-40 (.375) with 10 runs scored in the playoffs. Johnson played 84 games (78 starts) at second base for OKC, made two starts at third base, logged 25 games (20 starts) in left field and 16 games (14 starts) in center field. It marked the first time in Johnson’s professional career he did not exclusively play second base.
Johnson then went just 1-for-6 with one strikeout while appearing in five games with the Dodgers during the final month of the regular season. Including both Major League stints, he played second base (three games) and left field (one game).
Although the Dodgers have a clear need at second base, it never appeared as though much consideration was given to Johnson. He’s a lifetime .226/.299/.264 hitter in 43 Major League games, with four doubles, four RBI and three stolen bases.
