During the Memorial Day win over the Mariners, Jon Rauch was ahead in the count 0-1 with a runner on first and nobody out. Ken Griffey, Jr, was pinch hitting for catcher Rob Johnson. He grounded it to JJ Hardy who flipped to second to retire the runner. The next batter, Casey Kotchman lined it to Justin Morneau, who turned and fired it to Hardy for the tag on Griffey.
That’s the last we’ll ever see of Griffey on the field as a player. He has retired.
I’m not going to pretend Griffey was a favorite of mine, or I rooted for him, but you can’t deny he was one of the most exciting players of his era, and was certainly at the forefront of any baseball conversation at the beginning of the 90s, from his exciting plays in the field to his big bat to his video game to his appearance in Little Big League as something of a villain. It’s a shame that this brilliant, likable player was never a factor in the postseason, and has his name on no major records. At least we’ll have the memories, and he has the Hall of Fame.
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