Brewers ruin Johnson’s big night as D-Backs lose

MILWAUKEE — The ceremony was short. When Randy Johnson struck out Mike Cameron on a wicked slider at 7:17 p.m. CDT Tuesday to pass Roger Clemens for second place in major league history, players and coaches in the Diamondbacks’ dugout stood en masse and applauded, the D-Backs threw the ball around the horn and Mark Reynolds tossed it to a batboy for safekeeping.

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Johnson then went about his business, with the precision that has marked his march to 4,680 strikeouts, behind only mentor Nolan Ryan.

If only the Diamondbacks could have helped.

The D-Backs committed two more errors and had a base runner thrown out at second base, although none of those miscues mattered as much as Ryan Braun’s two-run home run in the sixth inning that gave Milwaukee a 2-1 lead in what grew into a 7-1 victory.

“He’s one of a kind,” manager Bob Melvin said of Johnson.

“When he struck that guy (Cameron) out, my hair stood on end,” catcher Miguel Montero said.

“We saw history tonight,” said Reynolds, who had two hits and drove in the D-Backs’ only run with a fourth-inning double. “Randy gave us a chance to win. We just didn’t score him any runs.”

The D-Backs (32-27) lost for the 11th time in 15 games, and for the 10th time in 12 road games.

Johnson (4-2) struck out eight and gave up six hits, only two until Braun’s homer after Cameron walked to open the sixth.

“I’m just frustrated,” said Johnson, who remained tied with Tommy John with 288 victories.

“At this point in my career, I really just want to win ballgames. Everything else is kind of secondary.”

The Brewers’ fans recognized what they were seeing. When Johnson left after giving up one more run in the seventh inning, almost all the 29,478 at Miller Park stood and applauded.

“The one thing I won’t forget is the crowd,” said Johnson, who waved his cap in response.

“Walking off the field to get a standing ovation as a visiting player, that meant a lot. I won’t ever forget that.”

 Major league strikeout leaders

Turning point: Ryan Braun hit a two-run home run off Randy Johnson in the sixth inning to give Milwaukee a 2-1 lead.

Stat of the game: Johnson broke a tie with Roger Clemens for No. 2 on the career strikeout list with his first of eight, giving him 4,680.

Unsung hero: Mark Reynolds had two hits for the second game in a row.

Runners on stay on: The D-Backs stranded both of their runners into scoring position Tuesday, finishing 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position. They are 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position in this series, both singles, one of which stayed in the infield.