The Kid

There are certain players that I have just enjoyed watching play over the course of their career and Ken Griffey, Jr., also known as "the Kid", was one of those players. I remember when his Upper Deck rookie card came out. I had to have this card. All I got was a box full of commons but no Ken Griffey, Jr., card. My soon-to-be-wife even bought me an entire box of Upper Deck baseball cards and no Griffey, Jr. My little brother goes out and buys two packs and gets a Ken Griffey, Jr., rookie card. I was pissed. My little brother did not even collect baseball cards. 27 years after the fact, I have a confession to make. I stole that card from my brother. He always thought Mom threw it out and I never corrected him. The card still sits in its protective plastic case firmly in my possession.

I watched Griffey, Jr., evolve from a player with unlimited potential playing for the Seattle Mariners into a who realized every bit of his potential. He put the Seattle Mariners on the map. His prolific homeruns, his highlight reel defense, and who can ever forget his race to home plate against the New York Yankees that knocked the Yankees out of the playoffs that season. He played with several other teams in his career but I will always remember his Seattle Mariners years.

When the steroid scandal started rocking professional baseball towards the end of Griffey, Jr.'s, career his name was never mentioned. He was often injured in the latter part of his career and I would love to have seen what his career numbers would have been if the injuries would not have started to mount. I saw part of his Hall of Fame induction speech today and putting the hat on backwards was a classic touch to a Hall of Fame career.