Randy Johnson models the Big Unit watch from Ulysse Nardin
Randy Johnson retired three years ago after 22 seasons in Major League Baseball as one of the biggest (literally, Johnson is 6 foot 10) and most successful pitchers in the history of the game. He racked up five Cy Young awards, 303 wins and 4,875 strikeouts, which ranks second all-time. He was also one the game?s best-paid players with career earnings of $176 million.
But these days, Johnson does not define himself by his baseball accomplishments. He has been a regular on USO trips to visit American troops overseas. ?It is the most rewarding thing I?ve done since I retired,? says Johnson. ?It is powerful. Even more so than my fastball.?
Johnson was in New York last month to launch the ?Big Unit? from Swiss watchmaker Ulysse Nardin. Johnson is a serious watch aficionado and the company produced 100 watches that include a subtle baseball at the base of the second hand and Johnson?s uniform No. 51 on the bezel in place of the usual No. 50. The watch retails for $15,500. Johnson visited Forbes to discuss life after baseball. Below is an edited version of the conversation.
Kurt Badenhausen: What have you been doing since you left baseball?
Randy Johnson: I?ve visited the troops on three different occasions. I?ve taken trips with my family. I?ve been able to fall back on a college education of photo journalism and enjoy a lot of photography of concerts, motorsports and my travels. I?ve had some photos published in various publications (click here for examples of his work).
My interest in photography started in college and then was on the back burner for 26 years. Baseball was my life. Now it is not. I have other interests. I have four kids that are playing sports. One is getting ready to go off to college. Baseball is not my life anymore, but I am still a fan. I am able to do things now that I was not able to do in the past because I have the time.
KB: How did you end up visiting the troops?
RJ: I had a friend that was affiliated with the USO. I went to Iraq and Kuwait in 2010 after I retired. In 2011 I was over in Okinawa and this year I went on what they call a Joint Chiefs of Staff tour. We went in to hostile areas and shook hands and took pictures and told troops they were appreciated for what they do. To rap the trip up, we flew into Germany and visited the Wounded Warriors there. If that doesn?t put everything into perspective, nothing will.
I had a great baseball career and this is my calling right now. It is very rewarding and satisfying. We see as many people as we can and shake as many hands as we can and say thank you. It is riveting to hear incoming mortar fire from a distance. We are not watching a movie. This is reality. Someone is trying to kill you. I witnessed this firsthand. That is why I am not rushing back into baseball.
KB: Do you miss baseball?
RJ: I played 26 years. I feel very fortunate that I was able to play as long as I did. I was able to accomplish a lot: World Series champion, World Series MVP, five Cy Youngs, second all-time in strikeouts. There was not a whole lot left for me to do. And I wasn?t going to be able to do it anyways even if there was a goal because I was 46 years old. The game ran its course.
KB: Any interest in a return to the game?
RJ: When the time comes. I have four kids and I didn?t see them grow up. I had opportunities to be a coach when I retired. I had opportunities to work for ESPN. I?m very appreciative of baseball, but I am not a lifer. The game will be there when I am ready to get back into it.
KB: When did your interest in watches begin?
RJ: I?ve always enjoyed watches. I got to visit various watch boutiques because of the cities I visited while playing baseball. I was always interested in visiting the nicer boutiques and looking at the watches I enjoyed wearing. I?ve been a Ulysse Nardin wearer long before our relationship started. I?m honored to be asked to be a part of the company.
KB: Why partner with Randy for this watch?
Ulysse Nardin CEO Patrik Hoffmann: In 2002, I was in the U.S. and didn?t know anything about baseball. I got a phone call on a Friday afternoon from one of our select boutiques in Florida who said, ?I heard about this new watch. I don?t anything about it, but Randy called and knows about it and wants it.? We shipped it directly to a hotel in New York the next day. That is how we met Randy.
For us it is more than an ambassadorship. We need to have a relationship. Randy is a friend of the brand. We had the idea to come up with a watch and the name was easy. It?s a big watch and we had the Big Unit. Randy helped us to come up some designs.
RJ: How can you not be floored to be a watch connoisseur and really enjoy watches and then have watches that you and now they have your nickname and number on one of their watches? I have a watch and I?ve been on the cover of Sports Illustrated. What could more could you ask for?
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