Erik Johnson Promoted to Triple A Charlotte

The Birmingham Barons and Chicago White Sox have announced that RHP Erik Johnson has been promoted to Triple A Charlotte.

In his first season at the Double-A level, Johnson helped lead the Barons to the best record in the Southern League and a first half North Division Championship going 8-2 with an ERA of 2.23 (21 ER/ 84.2 IP) over 14 starts. He leads the Southern League with 8 wins and ranks among the league leaders in numerous categories including WHIP (1st, 0.92), innings pitched (2nd), opponents average (2nd, .189), ERA (2nd) and strikeouts (3rd, 74).

Johnson, ranked as the No. 4 Prospect in the White Sox organization, was especially dominant at home going 5-1 with a 1.06 ERA in seven starts at Regions Field. He had scoreless outings in six of his 14 starts and won each of his last six starts while posting an ERA of 1.83 (8 ER/39.1 IP). His three complete games are the most of any pitcher in Minor League Baseball this season.

Johnson, 23, is in his third season professional season since being drafted by the White Sox in the second round of the June 2011 First-Year Player draft. He attended the University of California at Berkley where he helped lead the Golden Bears to a berth in the 2011 College World Series. Johnson has made 33 career appearances (31 starts), posting a record of 14-7 with a 2.41 ERA (48 ER/ 179.0 IP) with 163 strikeouts between Rookie Level Great Falls (2011), Class A Kannapolis and Class A Winston-Salem (2012) and Birmingham. This will be his first career appearance at the Triple A level.