Ben Johnson

Organization Prospect Rankings

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  Ranked San Diego Padres #4 prospect in 2006
  Johnson earned baseball and football scholarships to Mississippi State out of high school before opting to sign with the Cardinals, who sent him to San Diego in a 2000 trade for Carlos Hernandez. He spent parts of three seasons in Double-A but started to take off in mid-2004 and ended 2005 in San Diego, even making a playoff start. Johnson has all the tools to be an everyday outfielder in the big leagues. He has shortened his swing and developed above-average power while improving his grasp of the strike zone. Once a plus-plus runner, he's now just a tick above-average. He's a good right fielder with a solid arm. Johnson has a tendency to overswing, as he did in the postseason. He still has troubles with breaking balls, particularly against righthanders, and some scouts project him as a platoon player. The Padres have been patient and believe Johnson is ready to contribute in San Diego. With Brian Giles' surprising return, however, Johnson doesn't have an obvious opening in the lineup.
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  Ranked San Diego Padres #16 prospect in 2005
  While Johnson's tools compare with those of anyone in the organization, the Padres may have rushed him after acquiring him from the Cardinals at the 2000 trade deadline. Johnson began to translate many of his tools to in-game situations last year in his third Double-A season. Much of his success was credited to extensive sessions with roving hitting instructor Rob Deer. He continued to impress people with a strong showing in the Arizona Fall League. Johnson grades out at least average in all five tools. He's an excellent athlete with plus power and a plus arm. He's no longer the burner he once was, but he's still an above-average runner who can hold his own in center field, though he's better suited to right. Johnson has a good feel for the strike zone, but still has an all-or-nothing swing. Johnson's 2004 season did wonders for his confidence, and that may be all he needed to reach his potential. He'll begin the season at Triple-A, looking to prove his breakout campaign was no fluke.
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  Ranked San Diego Padres #15 prospect in 2003
  The Padres have been patient with Johnson since they got him from the Cardinals in exchange for overpriced catcher Carlos Hernandez in 2000. He always has been young for his league--he reached Double-A last year at age 20--and San Diego has taken his so-so numbers in the proper context. Johnson still is learning how to hit. After the season ended, he went to instructional league to tweak his swing before moving on to the Arizona Fall League. He's showing more patience at the plate, though he tends to overswing when he gets behind in the count, leading to strikeouts. He just needs to let his natural 20-20 ability take over. Johnson has improved in right field, where both his range and arm are plus tools. The Padres aren't sure if they'll keep him in Double-A at the start of 2003 so he can build off a fast start or send him to Triple-A.
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  Ranked San Diego Padres #11 prospect in 2002
  Padres general manager Kevin Towers has a gift for making trades, and one of his best was the July 2000 deal that sent overpriced backup catcher Carlos Hernandez to St. Louis for Johnson. While Hernandez missed all of last season with back problems, Johnson would be one of the Cardinals' two best position-player prospects if he hadn't left. He has made slow but steady progress since switching organizations. His numbers last year were boosted by The Diamond at Lake Elsinore, where he hit .332 as opposed to .221 on the road, but he had a solid high Class A season for a 20-year-old. While he still needs to make more contact, comparisons to a young Brian Jordan are still valid. Johnson has the potential to be at least a 20-20 player, and he has started to make adjustments and use the whole field. He saw some time in center field in 2001 but projects more as a right fielder with the range and arm to be an above-average defender. He's still young, so he might return to the California League for a month or two if San Diego deems him not ready for Double-A.
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  Ranked San Diego Padres #8 prospect in 2001
  Kevin Towers made some astute deals before the 2000 trading deadline. In one fell swoop, he shed the Padres of the last 14 months of Carlos Hernandez' excessive contract and acquired Johnson, the best prospect drafted by the Cardinals in 1999. The Padres' scouting reports compare Johnson to a young Brian Jordan. Johnson's most obvious gifts are size, strength and speed. For a young hitter, he has a good idea of the strike zone. Defensively, he has a solid arm and range for right field. A gifted athlete, he played both football and baseball at Germantown (Tenn.) High, one of the nation's top high school baseball programs. After wearing down in the second half of 2000, Johnson will have to adjust to the extended pro season. He showed the ability to make adjustments at the plate the year before, so there are no long-term concerns about his hitting. Johnson could move up to high Class A in 2001, though he could return to Fort Wayne if the Padres decide to promote some older outfielders from last year's championship club at Rookie-level Idaho Falls ahead of him. In either case, Johnson is about three years away from San Diego.

Minor League Top Prospects

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  Ranked Pacific Coast League #13 prospect in 2005
  It looked like a steal for the Padres when they acquired Johnson, who has at least average tools across the board, from the Cardinals in a July 2000 trade for Carlos Hernandez. But San Diego rushed Johnson, who floundered until he began to trust his strength in mid-2004. After spending most of three years in Double-A, he thrived when he finally reached Triple-A this year. No longer an overaggressive, dead-pull hitter, Johnson has a much better approach and uses the entire field. He has learned how to tap into his power, hitting 48 homers the last two seasons after totaling 57 in his first five. One scout questioned his ability to hit good breaking balls from righthanders, however. Built like Vernon Wells, Johnson split his time between center and right field for Portland. He doesn't have true center-field speed, but he has plenty of arm strength for right.
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  Ranked California League #16 prospect in 2001
  Johnson has all the tools, including power, speed and a right-field arm. But like Krynzel he made his Cal League debut at age 19 and his numbers suffered somewhat. His biggest deficiency was making contact, as he whiffed 141 times in 136 games. "He's a 20-year-old with power that is just starting to come out of his bat," Colbert said. "He strikes out a lot, but that's to be expected for a 20-year-old kid in this league."
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  Ranked Midwest League #11 prospect in 2000
  The Cardinals have traded away so many prospects in recent years that Johnson, a 1999 fourth-round pick, entered the season as the most promising position player in their system. That ended in July, when they dealt him to the Padres to get catcher Carlos Hernandez. Johnson slumped after moving from Peoria to Fort Wayne, but he still showed more than the other really raw tools outfielders in the league, such as Ambres and Faison. "He’s big and strong and he can run," Lansing manager Steve McFarland said. "He had a below-average year, but look at him and his athleticism and his age. He will dominate if he repeats this league." Johnson grasps the strike zone pretty well for a teenager. He hits the ball hard, hustles and has a strong arm to go with his good range.

• December, 1999 Scouting Report
  The Cardinals have traded away so many prospects in recent years that Johnson, a 1999 fourth-round pick, entered the season as the most promising position player in their system. That ended in July, when they dealt him to the Padres to get catcher Carlos Hernandez. Johnson slumped after moving from Peoria to Fort Wayne, but he still showed more than the other really raw tools outfielders in the league, such as Ambres and Faison. "He’s big and strong and he can run," Lansing manager Steve McFarland said. "He had a below-average year, but look at him and his athleticism and his age. He will dominate if he repeats this league." Johnson grasps the strike zone pretty well for a teenager. He hits the ball hard, hustles and has a strong arm to go with his good range.