New Round Rock pitcher Billy Ray ‘Rojo’ Johnson (who looks like Will Ferrell) has interesting debut

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The news release was sent out earlier in the week, to little notice:

‘The Round Rock Express have acquired Billy Ray ‘Rojo’ Johnson... Johnson, who was born in East Texas but was raised in Venezuela, recently had his prison sentence commuted. He served time for running a smuggling ring that imported rare and illegal species of reptiles into the United States from South America during the mid-to-late 1990s.’

No one usually cares when a minor league team, in this instance the triple-A Round Rock Express, acquires an unknown player. But this person was unusual.

Rojo made his debut for the Houston Astros’ affiliate on Thursday, carrying a six-pack of beer with him to the mound. His first pitch went behind the batter, and Johnson was immediately ejected from the game.

Now, before you get too concerned, here’s the catch: Billy Ray ‘Rojo’ Johnson was actually Will Ferrell in disguise. Ferrell did it to promote a charity golf event being held in Austin, Texas.

Why would Round Rock agree to it? Well, the Express drew their largest crowd of the season, with more than 10,000 in attendance, including more than 4,000 walk-up sales.

-- Houston Mitchell