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PHOENIX -- Randy Johnson will make his first Major League appearance since June 28 on Monday night in San Francisco.

The Big Unit suffered a reherniation of a disk in his back and underwent surgery in early August to repair it.

Johnson made two starts this season for Triple-A Tucson, most recently tossing six innings of three-hit, three-run baseball against Salt Lake, hitting his target of 85 pitches. He was much more pleased after his second outing than his first, when he allowed five runs in four innings.
"I feel good," Johnson said Friday. "The main thing was getting my work in. I accomplished what I wanted to accomplish."

The game will not be broadcast on FSN Arizona, but the D-backs are making the game available at dbacks.com free of charge without a local blackout. Manager Bob Melvin said it won't matter that the game isn't televised locally.

"Everybody knows when Randy Johnson's pitching," Melvin said. "Every time he takes the mound, he gets the attention of both teams."

Johnson conveniently slid right into the rotation for Doug Davis, who had thyroid cancer surgery on Thursday.

'With Doug down, I think the timing is pretty good for [Johnson] coming back," Melvin said. "His last outing was encouraging for him. He felt the best he had felt. He got his six innings in, he got his pitch count in, the strikeouts were up a little bit and he was a little bit better with his slider."

After being on a specific pitch count in his two Minor League outings, Johnson will not be on a limited in San Francisco. Melvin said he will gauge the pitch count on how he's throwing.
Outfielder Eric Byrnes said the Big Unit can make a huge impact this season if he remains healthy.

"It will be exciting to see Randy out there," Byrnes said. "If we could get 20-plus starts out of him, that would be huge."

The D-backs will also get their first taste of what life is like at AT&T Park without all-time home run leader Barry Bonds, the Giants' left fielder since 1993.

"It will be different," Melvin said. "It will be interesting to see how the park feels without Barry there. He had a lot to do with the excitement and aura of that ballpark."

-Mike Ritter/MLB.com

danny@arizonapitching.com

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