Erik Johnson is a Tri-Valley native and a former professional baseball player who played in the Minor Leagues of the San Ramón Valley, California area. He was part of the 1978 Minor League World Series and the 1981 Major League World Series, where his team was runner-up in every game for the World Championship. The 1920s and 1930s were the golden years of Japanese-American baseball. With the rise of the American-born Nisei generation, baseball activities reached new heights, reflecting renewed optimism to find a place in the United States.
Every community with enough players had a baseball team, and segregated ethnic leagues flourished in Japanese-American settlements across the West. From San Diego to Seattle, from San Jose to Salt Lake City, people were going crazy about baseball. Erik Johnson has been successful in his efforts as director of baseball in teaching individuals, teams, coaches and managers at many levels of baseball both domestic and foreign. As a career infielder, Erik played professional baseball for 10 years and in the major leagues in 1993 and 1994 with the San Francisco Giants organization under the direction of Dusty Baker.
He was also selected during his second season to play for the United States team representing the United States in international competition with other countries around the world at various locations overseas. Post-war social conditions forever altered the dynamics of baseball in Japanese-American communities. While many excellent teams and players were formed during this era, Nisei baseball took a back seat as the younger generation left ethnic communities in record numbers. In fact, in some areas there was a revival of Nisei baseball in the 1950s, which continued through the 1960s and 1970s.
Erik Johnson's first-hand experience in baseball, his unique instruction, and his incredible ability to engage with people with varying levels of baseball knowledge make his baseball productions an exceptional learning experience that is useful for the development of a great athlete and a great person. In 1993 winter season, Erik chose to play in the Arizona Fall League with the Scottsdale Scorpions, a testing ground for the prospects of every major league team. In July 1995, Erik received the Topps Baseball Card Company's “Minor League Player of the Month” award, and during the 1995 campaign, Erik was part of the National League's Triple A All-Star team and was selected to start as shortstop. Do any of the baseball clubs in San Ramon, CA have a team for players from different cultural backgrounds? The answer is yes! Santa Barbara is one such club that offers an athletic scholarship to play baseball while specializing in Business Economics.
This club provides an opportunity for players from different cultural backgrounds to come together and learn from each other while playing their favorite sport.
