Ventura’s Johnson to Sign With Mariners

Ventura College football and baseball standout John Johnson announced Thursday that he will sign a contract with the Seattle Mariners this weekend, passing up his sophomore year at the school.

Johnson, a 1989 graduate of Channel Islands High, was selected in the 54th round of last June’s amateur draft by Seattle. Hoping to improve his contract value, he opted to attend Ventura and play baseball.

But Johnson, 19, also joined the football team and rushed for 553 yards in seven games. He started at second base in 24 of 35 games for Ventura’s baseball team, batting .412 with five home runs and 15 runs batted in.

Terms of the contract were not released, but Johnson said he was happy with the signing bonus. He said he will be sent to either the Mariners’ rookie-league team in Bellingham, Wash., or to a team in Arizona.