Listed at 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) tall and 205 pounds (93 kg), the native of Parkin, Arkansas, batted and threw left-handed.

He was selected by the Expos in the fifth round of the 1980 Major League Baseball Draft out of Tennessee State University.

In his eight-season minor league career, Johnson hit .291 with 85 homers and 428 RBI in 773 games, including an .829 on-base plus slugging percentage.

Dealt to the Oakland Athletics, he was a member of the Triple-A Tacoma Tigers during three seasons (1986–1988), hitting .343 in 1986.

Johnson died at his San Francisco de Campeche home of a heart attack at the age of 49.