| Aaron Johnson |
|
|
AT ILLINOIS
2008 - Sophomore: Played in 46 games and started 42 ... Became Illinois' everyday catcher after April 6 at Indiana, starting 27 of the last 29 games ... Hit .306 overall and .337 in Big Ten play ... Had a career-best 12-game hitting streak from April 20-May 5 ... Had six multiple-hit games during that hitting streak ... Led the Big Ten in runners caught stealing (24) with the fewest stolen bases against him among everyday catchers (33), throwing out a whopping 43 percent of would-be base-stealers ... Threw out over half of the runners who attempted steals (17-of-32) against him in Big Ten play ... Tied for fourth in Big Ten in runners picked off (3) ... Ranked sixth on the team with seven multiple-RBI games ... Had a career day in the finale at Indiana, going 3-for-6 with a homer, five RBIs and three runs ... Hit a walk-off home run against Northwestern on May 5 to give Illinois a 10-9 win ... Had a pair of two-hit games in the series against Purdue ... Academic All-Big Ten selection ... Played for the Rochester Honkers of the Northwoods League along with teammates Phil Haig, Craig Lutes and Kevin Manson.
PRIOR TO ILLINOIS
Hit .333 for the Lethbridge Bulls of the Western Major Baseball League in Canada over the summer of 2007 ... Had 18 RBI, 15 runs, eight doubles, two home runs and a triple in 21 games, and threw out 7-of-18 would-be base-stealers ... Hit .333 with 30 RBI, seven doubles, a homer, a .500 on-base percentage and 9-of-12 stolen bases for Prairie Baseball Academy in 2007 ... Led his U-17 team to a national championship by hitting .370 with two homers in the finals.
PERSONAL
Born March 15, 1987 ... Parents are Bill and Rhonda Johnson ... Majoring in sociology ... Younger brother, Jay, plays for PBA ... Drafted in the 46th round by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2006 ... Lists Ivan Rodriguez as his favorite athlete ... Earliest baseball memory is the Seattle Mariners winning the American League Divisional Series on Joey Cora's double that drove in Ken Griffey Jr.
