Charles Johnson’s baseball story is woven deep into South Florida, and the former Marlins catcher still carries that history with him every day.
Born and raised in Florida, Johnson starred at the University of Miami before spending seven seasons with the Marlins. Along the way, he built a résumé full of moments that define a career: catching multiple no-hitters, winning the 1997 World Series, contributing offensively in that title run - especially in Game 7 - and earning a handful of All-Star nods. Now he’s passing that knowledge along to younger players.
Johnson recently sat down with Jeremy Tache on the “Talkin with Tache” podcast to talk through that path and why the catcher spot has always meant so much to him. Defense has always been the foundation for him, and behind the plate was where he felt most at home.
“For me, it's the best position in the game,” Johnson said. “To be back behind home plate, to be able to call games, control the game, you're pretty much being the quarterback of the whole situation, and so a lot of weight is on your shoulders, but it's a good weight because you know I get a chance to dictate and help a pitcher out.
It's so rewarding when you win a game as a catcher. When you lose, it's tough because you're thinking about things I could have called differently.”
That mindset carried through his work with a long list of pitchers, including Brad Penny, A.J. Burnett and Mike Mussina.
One of his most memorable nights came with Livan Hernandez in Game 5 of the 1997 NLCS against the Atlanta Braves, when Hernandez struck out 15. Johnson said communication was a challenge because of the language barrier, but the two found a way to make it work.
With the strike zone running wide that night, Johnson told Hernandez to keep the ball away from it.
“The craziest game I've ever been part of,” Johnson said.
That game came long before strike-zone replay, a reminder of how different the sport looked in 1997.
Johnson’s biggest team memory still belongs to the Marlins’ first World Series title, which will be 30 years ago next year. At the time, Miami was the fastest expansion team to win a championship until the Diamondbacks did it in 2001. Johnson still wears his championship ring, and he showed it during the interview.
“My favorite memory was after we won the World Series,” Johnson said. “A lot of people don't know this, but we came into the locker room, into the training room, all the players, all the coaches.
Everybody had a say and said how they felt about the season. It was an intimate moment that we all had, and I truly enjoyed that.”
Johnson also spent two seasons as a teammate of Cal Ripken Jr. in Baltimore and was part of the unforgettable 2001 All-Star Game. These days, he’s watching his son find success in football, while his own place in Marlins history remains secure. In South Florida, Charles Johnson is still one of the names that sticks.
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