Staying resilient

It wasn't always easy for the family to stick to their guns, especially for Johnson. At one point during the draft he asked O'Connell to call a team back and possibly reconsider an offer the family had already turned down.

He was quickly talked out of the idea, but Johnson's father still remembers how difficult it was for his son to watch his friends — Blake Mitchell (Kansas City Royals, No. 8 overall), Noble Meyer (Miami Marlins, No. 10) and Bryce Eldridge (San Francisco Giants, No. 16) — get drafted in the first round while his name was not getting called.

"For an 18-year-old kid, to see his buddies go, knowing what kind of talent and what kind of performance he had in high school, in particular his senior year and in the summers, he thought he should've (been picked already)," the elder Johnson said. "We all did."

Ultimately, the Johnson family and O'Connell stayed true to their word, even while many of their contemporaries — from high school and college — were getting drafted and eventually signing under-slot deals.

Out of 39 players selected in the first round, 22 signed under-slot deals with teams.

"It was hectic, especially that first night," Johnson said. "I was getting calls and teams in the first round were offering and we were like 'Hey, this is not our number,' and I was like, 'Dang, that's a lot of money.'

"But you have to realize in the (long run) that's (might be) the only contract you're getting with that amount of money."

NIL was also a factor, but Johnson said it was not discussed much until the end of the second day of the draft when it became clear that he was likely going to LSU.

Johnson was eventually selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 20th round of the draft. But by that point, he almost certainly knew his future was at LSU and his dream of playing professional baseball would be placed on hold.

For Jay and LSU fans, this news was an outcome that almost nobody expected.

In the past, LSU signees who were projected first-round picks usually never step foot on campus after they are selected. For Dylan Crews, a projected first-round pick in the 2020 draft, passing up MLB in favor of LSU was more of an exception.

According to MLB.com, Johnson was the highest-ranked prospect in the draft — high school or college — who didn't sign with an MLB team.

"Cam sneaking through, squeezing through the draft is probably one of the bigger surprises in my coaching career relative to a player showing up at school," Jay said last August. "I mean, I had no thought of him showing up, basically because of the talent."

The aftermath

Little about Johnson's decision to turn down MLB was easy. But what has come easily is his enjoyment of life at LSU the last few months.

He believes he's already improved as a pitcher since arriving in Baton Rouge and working under new pitching coach Nate Yeskie.

Yeskie has helped improve Johnson's slider by instructing him to throw it with more velocity — therefore creating sharper movement with the pitch — and has taught him valuable tips on how to control runners on base better while on the mound.

"Coach Yeskie, man, it's unbelievable," he said. "I'm getting the best type of instruction and development here."

There is no guarantee for what the future holds for Johnson, or, for that matter, any of the 2023 MLB draft prospects.

But for the now LSU Tiger, there is one thing he knows for certain: He's happy with the path he chose.

"I know he loves (being at LSU)," his father said. "He loves the coaches, loves his teammates. It seems like he's built a lot of friendships quickly, which I'm really happy about."