Former Nationals Manager Davey Johnson Passes Away at Age of 82

Former Washington Nationals manager Davey Johnson has passed away.

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On Saturday, it was announced that former Washington Nationals manager Davey Johnson passed away at the age of 82.

The baseball lifer enjoyed both an incredible playing and managing career, signing with the Baltimore Orioles as an amateur free agent in 1962 before debuting with the big league team three years later. He finished third in the AL Rookie of the Year voting in 1966 after slashing .257/.298/.351 with seven home runs and 56 RBI across 133 games, but it wasn't until a few seasons later where he broke out.

He was selected to three consecutive All-Star teams from 1968-70. He won three straight Gold Glove Awards from 1969-71 and finished 19th in AL MVP voting in 1971. Johnson was also part of four World Series teams with the Orioles, winning two championships in 1966 and 1970.

The Washington Nationals join Major League Baseball in mourning the passing of Davey Johnson.

Johnson managed the Nationals from 2011-13 and led the team to its first NL East title. pic.twitter.com/qgh8qjg8JK

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) September 6, 2025

Baltimore traded Johnson to the Atlanta Braves ahead of the 1973 season, and during that year, he enjoyed the best season of his career with an All-Star selection and 13th-place finish in NL MVP voting after he blasted 43 home runs to go along with 99 RBI and a slash line of .270/.370/.546.

Following his release by the Braves, he went overseas and played in Japan with the Yomiuri Giants for two seasons in 1975 and 1976. Johnson then came back to the United States by signing with the Philadelphia Phillies before finishing his playing career with the Chicago Cubs.

After that, he got into coaching, taking over as manager of the New York Mets in 1984 and winning the World Series with them in 1986; the last championship for that franchise.

Davey Johnson's Impact On Nationals

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Johnson didn't arrive to the nation's capital until 2011, and it was a winding road to get there.

After managing the Cincinnati Reds from 1993-95 following his firing by the Mets in 1990, he returned to Baltimore as their manager in 1996. And despite winning the AL Manager of the Year Award in 1997, he resigned because he didn't get along with then-owner Peter Angelos.

He was hired by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1999 and became the fastest manager to ever win 1,000 games in his career. But he was later fired following the 2000 season because the lack of success the team had.

That started his career in international baseball, managing the Netherlands national team in 2003 before serving as their bench coach in the 2004 Summer Olympics. He then managed the United States and was their bench coach during multiple international competitions.

Johnson joined the front office of Washington in 2006 and was named the senior advisor to general manager Mike Rizzo after 2009. But following a surprise resignation of Nationals manager Jim Riggelman in June of 2011, Johnson took over as the skipper. During his tenure in the nation's capital, he had a 224-183 record and led Washington to their first-ever NL East division title in 2012. After the 2013 season, he announced his retirement.

Johnson finished his 13-year playing career with a .261/.340/.404 slash line, 136 home runs, 609 RBI, four All-Star selections, three Gold Glove Awards and two World Series championships.

He finished his managerial career with a 1372-1071 record, two Manager of the Year Awards, five division titles and a World Series championship.