Mark Langston, the Pitching Star Who Wanted to be a Rock Star
Don't we all want to be a rock star?
Mark Langston called the Mariners organization home for most of the 1980s, a thoroughly depressing way to spend that decade. He was drafted in 1981, made his major league debut in 1984, and escaped when he was traded to the Montreal Expos in 1989 for a guy named Randy Johnson.
Incidentally, while with the Mariners, Langston was in a band that foreshadowed his eventually trade called The Johnsons. Formed in 1986, The Johnsons included Mariners pitchers Jerry Reed, Pete Ladd, and Matt Young, and strength and conditioning coach Peter Schmock. Langston joked of the band, “We know three chords. We’re working on a fourth.”1 He said they played local malls and Fred Meyer stores. (If this is true and anyone reading this saw them perform, I must know everything immediately.)
After guest DJing at Seattle radio stations KUBE and KISW, Langston had an opportunity to promote his band on MTV in 1988. While the Mariners were in New York, Langston took time away from the team to record his guest V.J. spot. The hour-long spot aired on May 18, 1988 at 10 PM in Seattle. I’ve searched for video of his appearance and have come up short, so we’ll have to rely on newspaper recaps. From the Seattle Times:
Langston, a hard-rock fan who once did a Jacksonese moon walk above a dugout during a rain delay, introduced a variety of videos ranging from Springsteen to his favorite group, Yes. He dedicated two Springsteen songs, the first, “Rosalita” to designated hitter Ken Phelps, and then “Glory Days,” which has little correlation to the Mariners, to his personal catcher, Scott Bradley.
Langston, who appeared in front of a giant picture of the Kingdome with the Mariners' logo above it, talked with (VJ Kevin) Beal about his strikeout success. He mentioned that he has won the league strikeout title three of the past four seasons and had a 16-strikeout night May 10 against Toronto.… Throughout the show, taped segments of Langston's pitching performances were shown as Dire Straits' “Walk of Life” played in the background.2
(The Springsteen songs foreshadow his future career in baseball media.)
At the end of the hour, Mariners pitching coach Billy Connors made a cameo/pitching change and signaled for a right-hander.3
A year after the MTV appearance, Langston was traded to the Expos and The Johnsons were no more. Jerry Reed was devastated by the trade and the end of the band. He said, “I would never have guessed I’d be the last one here.” After saying how close he was with Langston outside of baseball, he continued, “The Johnsons will not be a solo act. They are now officially disbanded.”4
The end of The Johnsons was the beginning of the Randy Johnson Era. Although (as far as I know), Randy wasn’t part of a band while he was with the Mariners, he was pretty big into the music scene in Seattle. He was friendly with nearly every band coming up in Seattle in the early 90s, and was particularly good friends with Kim Thayil from Soundgarden. Every so often there’s a mention in the papers about this musician or that band member joining him during batting practice at the Kingdome. After he retired, he combined his photography hobby and his music interests and began doing extensive concert photography.
There are a handful of current bands named The Johnsons. One is located in Modesto, CA, home of the Mariners’ Single-A affiliate Modesto Nuts. That’s…appropriate.
Odds & Ends
- The Johnsons weren’t the only 1980s Mariners music act. A band of Mariners took advantage of the 1981 strike to record a song called Kingdome. The group, called Lenny Randle & Ballplayers, was led by Lenny Randle and also featured Larry Andersen, Bryan Clark, Al Cowens, Julio Cruz, Todd Cruz, and Dick Drago. I wrote about the musical talents of Lenny Randle several years ago, and luckily their “hit” song “Kingdome” is still out there in the world:
- Saturday evening Félix Hernández was inducted into the Mariners Hall of Fame. I have so much to say about it, and simultaneously, nothing to say, no words. I tried to write about him last week and it felt so maudlin and detached. Being there with all the different thoughts I had in my head, I appreciated so much that Félix held nothing back, he freely cried and didn’t try to hide it. It was cathartic. It was a beautiful evening, a perfect moment for the King. Happy Félix Day, indeed.
- It was also really fun to boo John Stanton. 10/10 would recommend to a friend.
SHERWIN, BOB. "LANGSTON GETS ROCKED IN MTV START." THE SEATTLE TIMES, May 19, 1988: F1
SHERWIN, "LANGSTON GETS ROCKED." F1
"MARINER NOTEBOOK." Seattle Post-Intelligencer, May 18, 1988: D2.
FINNIGAN, BOB. "GOODBYE, MARK`A SAD DAY FOR MARINER BASEBALL,' PRESLEY SAYS OF LANGSTON DEPARTURE." THE SEATTLE TIMES, May 26, 1989: E1.
Proud of us for booing Stanton. I heard his remarks were painfully long but I have little interest in finding the clip for myself.
Great article. Always loved Langston's leg kick and his propensity to frequently drop his armslot.
It's too bad that MTV episode is lost media atm.