TAKING FLIGHT: Accidental bird killer Randy Johnson building animal sanctuaries

Table of Contents

Hall of Famer Randy Johnson is aiming for the birds — again.

Article content

The former big-league pitcher wasn’t trying to hit a bird when he hurled a pitch toward home plate during a spring training game back in 2001, but that’s exactly what happened.

Article content

The incident went down as one of MLB’s most memorable moments — for better or worse.

Johnson delivered a fastball, and as he tossed it towards the plate, a bird flew in the path of the ball and collided with it. There was an explosion of feathers, and the ace known as The Big Unit is forever linked to the death of a bird on the field.

Now, 20 years later, Johnson is making things right. He’s starting a campaign to turn satellite dishes into bird sanctuaries.

Recommended from Editorial

The 60-year-old native of Walnut Creek, Calif., is teaming up with DirecTV to give birds new homes.

Article content

“Twenty-three years later, it’s still out there, it still seems to be relevant,” Johnson told Front Office Sports, according to the U.S. Sun.

“So, after 23 years, I’m doing a nice campaign now with DirecTV and what they’ve done is they’ve had me make these bird ballparks with their old satellite dishes.

“The campaign is really to try and right myself with the bird that I hit with the baseball.

“I think everyone will think it’s really funny.”

The former big-leaguer posted on social media about the start of his campaign, and fans were digging the idea.

“Amazing stuff! Love it, Randy!” one fan said.

“That commercial is hands down the best ad I’ve seen in a long time!” another fan said.

Randy Johnson of the Arizona Diamondbacks pitches against the San Francisco Giants on March 14, 2008. GETTY IMAGES FILES

Since retiring from the game at age 46 in 2010, Johnson has found a new career as a photographer. He had studied photojournalism at the University of Southern California and has done photography work for NFL games, a tour with the Canadian rock band Rush, and various wildlife projects.

Johnson, best known for his time in Seattle, Arizona and New York, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015, his first year of eligibility.

Article content

RECOMMENDED VIDEO