Randy Johnson had just become the oldest pitcher ever to throw a perfect game — a feat that left him with some mixed feelings. He wasn't looking to take the Advil account away from Nolan Ryan.

"You guys keep saying I'm old," Johnson said to reporters. "And someday I will be."

That was more than five years ago, after his 2004 bit of perfection against the Atlanta Braves, a game in which his final pitch clocked at 98 mph, and the truth is we're finally closing in on that chapter in his one-of-a-kind career.

Johnson can't go to the mound and beat hitter after hitter with his blazing fastball anymore. He has to pitch. But you figure that's probably all right with the 6-foot-10-inch left-hander from Livermore, Calif., because that's really all he ever has wanted to be — a pitcher.

On Wednesday night along the banks of the Anacostia River, practically in the shadow of the Washington Monument, the 45-year-old will get his first chance to win his 300th game and, in the minds of anyone who otherwise might link him to Bert Blyleven and Tommy John, validate his greatness.

He's trying to become the 24th member of the 300-victory club and the first since Phil Niekro in 1985 to get the milestone triumph on his first try.

If for no reason other than the fact he's facing baseball's weakest team, the Nationals, it wouldn't be surprising if he does what Ryan, Don Sutton, Roger Clemens, Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine couldn't — win No. 300 on his first try. But the punching-bag status of his opponent is not the only reason to like his chances.

Compared to his Hall of Fame predecessors, the Big Unit is a picture of perseverance. He had won just three games when he was traded for the first time, going from Montreal to Seattle at 25 in 1989. He has more wins in his 40s (71) than he did in his 20s (64).

A free agent for only the second time in his 22-season career, Johnson was interested in coming to the Cubs last winter. He headed to San Francisco when general manager Jim Hendry was preoccupied with Milton Bradley and Jake Peavy, who is experiencing an up-and-down season.

Having beaten Atlanta in his last start, Johnson is 4-4 with a 5.71 earned-run average in 10 starts in the Giants' ultra-intriguing starting rotation that includes Tim Lincecum, Barry Zito and Matt Cain. He still can run his fastball up to 95 at times, helping him keep his strikeout totals at an enviable one-an-inning pace.

A huge fan favorite in Seattle and Arizona, Johnson has withstood three back surgeries and bad knees to turn into a serial accumulator of statistics. By the Giants' count, he has thrown 66,806 pitches, starting 596 games and covering 4,0911/3 innings.

Those numbers have left him with a 299-164 record, 3.29 ERA and five Cy Young Awards. He has been in the top three in Cy Young voting nine times.

Don't we all feel silly for even wondering aloud if Glavine would be the last 300-game winner when he reached that milestone at Wrigley Field two hot Augusts ago?

Glavine's overwhelming feeling that day, he said, was "probably relief." Johnson's total was at 284 at the time. He was a month shy of turning 44 and having recurring back problems.

"I'm not saying I want to be the last (300-game winner)," Glavine said. "I would love for someone to have this feeling and this sense of accomplishment."

Johnson recently admitted to having been motivated by something he heard said as Glavine closed in on his 300th victory. He recounted to a reporter how New York Yankees' teammate Al Leiter told him in 2005 that Glavine probably would be the last to 300.

"I looked at him and went, 'Oh, really?'" Johnson told Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci. "The thought may have been in the back of my head, but I wouldn't be confident enough to say to anyone, 'I'm going to do it.'"

This might have been a legitimate debate if it had not been premature. Of all the pitchers to overlook, how could anyone have overlooked Johnson?

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