
Just look at that swing. It is not just a swing, it’s an art form. It’s what you tell you’re little league’ers. “Keep you’re back elbow up at a 90 degree angle. Keep two hands on the bat. Keep your feet at shoulders length. Follow through with the bat, and drive the ball.” That’s what Junior Griffey did best. Every one always says, “If there is one Major Leaguer today that you want your son to emulate,” stop right there. The discussion begins and ends with Junior. There was simply no one better in his prime.
There was a time not too long ago, when Griffey was the face of baseball. A fun loving kid that wore his hat backwards, put on an absolute show during batting practice, and made “Mays” like catches look routine in center field. He was the definition of the “five tool player.” In his prime (the entire 1990’s) he hit for average, he hit for power, he averaged 41.3 home runs per season (excluding 1995, only 72 games played), he could swipe a bag with ease, and could track down any ball within a country mile. Junior was fun to watch. Forget Manny, Forget Bonds, Forget A-Rod, McGwire and Sosa. Junior is the face of this era, we’ve just forgotten about him due to an injury plagued decade. But mark my words, history will look kindly upon Junior, and regard him as the Pantheon of the “Steroid Era.”

If you have any reservations about crowning Griffey as the King , then you really need to take a good look at the insane numbers this guy has put up, and the awards he has on his mile long mantle somewhere. He won the AL MVP in 1997. He appeared in every All-Star game from 1990-2000, not to mention the 2004 and 2007 games. He won a Gold Glove in every season in the ’90’s. He won the Silver Slugger award seven times in the ’90’s. And by the end of this season will be the active leader in more categories then I care to list.
I’m a stat guy. So lets really break down Griffey’s stats. If we exclude 1995 from the equation when he only played 72 games and hit 17 homers, then Griffey would have averaged 41.3 home runs a year from 1990-2000. That decade includes 1994, a season when Griffey was limited to 111 games, but still hit 40 long balls. He would have hit 60 if he had played all 162! But injuries plagued too much of Griffy’s career. Even though he still looked like a kid, by the time he reached the age of 32, injuries began to pile up. From the 2001 season on he only averaged 21 home runs a season. That’s a 20 home run decrease from his 1990’s average.

I’m going to be nice to Griffey. I’m gonna say, without injuries, he would have averaged 33 home runs a season from 2001-2008. Some might say that’s to generous, I say not a chance. Griffey’s actual HR total is 611, but lets say that he did averaged 33 HR’s a season after 2001. Griffey would be sitting on 701 right now! And today we would be talking about Griffey passing Hammer’n Hank this season back where it all started for Griffey in Seattle.
But maybe I’m wrong. Maybe 32 is a perfectly legitimate age for a “pure” player to start breaking down. And maybe all these freaks of nature who hit 40 home runs into their 40’s are all on the juice? I don’t know. What I do know is, is that Junior played the game right. He never showed up the game, or thought he was bigger than baseball. As a teenager I watched the home run derby every year because of Griffey. I wanted to see the kid wearing the backwards hat hit the ball a mile, and I remember when he came to Fenway in ‘99 and put on a show.
So A-Rod, here is a news flash for you. Sit down and shut up! You were never our hero in the first place. You were only filling in while Griffey was out sick. He still looks like a 21 year old out there on the field. He’s not as quick as he once was, and he may have to DH every other day or so to keep fresh, but at 39 years-old Griffey is returning to Seattle for a farewell tour. Who knows, maybe he will find his swing in Seattle and hit 40 dingers this year? Maybe he’s got three or four years left in him. And if he does return to form maybe Griffey can save this game that we love. Again.















