Johnny Ray included in 2019 class of SEC Baseball Legends

Despite never playing in the conference, Johnny Ray has been selected as one of four SEC Baseball Legends for 2019, the league announced Thursday.

The former two-time All-Southwest Conference second baseman helped Arkansas to a runner-up finish at the 1979 College World Series before enjoying a 10-year MLB career.

Both of the Razorbacks' other SEC Baseball Legends were also members of that national runner-up team, as Ray joins former All-American outfielder Kevin McReynolds (inaugural 2012 class) and former head coach Norm DeBriyn (2016 class).

A junior college transfer from Northeast Oklahoma A&M, Ray hit .319 over his two seasons at Arkansas and led the team in hits and runs scored each year. He also led the team with 47 RBIs as a senior in 1979.

Following his time in Fayetteville, he was a 12th-round pick by the Houston Astros in the 1979 MLB Draft and spent just a couple of years in the minors before breaking into the big leagues with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Although he finished second behind Steve Sax in the voting by the BWAA, Ray was named the 1982 Rookie of the Year by The Sporting News. The following year, he won the Silver Slugger Award as the top hitting second baseball in the National League.

His lone All-Star Game appearance came in 1988 as a member of the California Angels, when he hit .306 and posted career highs in doubles (42) and RBIs (83).

Ray ended his career with 1,502 hits - including 294 doubles, 36 triples and 53 home runs - to give him a .290 career batting average. He also had 594 RBIs and posted a career fielding percentage of .982, which ranks 81st among second basemen in MLB history.

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