Ken Griffey, Jr. (2016)


Date of Birth: 11/21/1969
Birthplace: Donora, Pennsylvania

Ken Griffey, Jr. followed in his father's footsteps, Ken Griffey, Sr., when he decided to make baseball his sport and career. His father played for two of the same teams as his son, the Cincinnati Reds and the Seattle Mariners. Both father and son played for the Mariners in 1990 and 1991.

Griffey, Jr. was a top player in high school and in 1987, he was named the US High School Baseball Player of the Year. In June of that year, he was drafted by the Mariners as the number one overall draft pick.

Seattle Mariners

Griffey was with the Mariners from 1987 through 1999. He spent his first two seasons with them in their minor league system.

In 1989, his first season in the major leagues, Griffey batted .264 with 120 hits, 23 doubles, 16 home runs, 61 RBIs, and 83 strikeouts to 44 walks in 127 games. The following season was even better, with 179 hits, 28 doubles, 22 home runs, 16 stolen bases, 80 RBIs, 81 strikeouts to 63 walks, and a .300 batting average in 155 games.

In 1990, Griffey began his domination as the best center fielder in the American League, winning his first of 10 consecutive Gold Glove awards. That year, he made 330 putouts and 7 errors in 151 games.

Griffey continued to excel in 1991, winning his first of seven Silver Slugger awards. That year, he had a career high .327 batting average with 179 hits, a career high 42 doubles, 22 home runs, 100 RBIs, and 82 strikeouts to 71 walks in 154 games.

In 1992, Griffey won the All-Star Game MVP award, an award his father won 12 years before. He finished the regular season with 174 hits, 39 doubles, 27 home runs, 103 RBIs, and a .308 batting average in 142 games. The following season, he won his second Silver Slugger award, batting .309 with 180 hits, 38 doubles, 45 home runs, 109 RBIs, and 91 strikeouts to 96 walks in 156 games.

Griffey showed his power in 1994 when he led the AL in home runs, won a Silver Slugger award, and won the first of three Home Run Derbys. Although his game play was limited by a baseball strike, he had 140 hits, 24 doubles, 40 home runs, and a .323 batting average in just 111 games. The following year, his season was shortened by a broken wrist, and he ended up playing in just 72 games in 1995.

From 1996 through 1999, Griffey won a Silver Slugger award each year. In 1996, he had a .303 batting average with 165 hits, 26 doubles, 49 home runs, and 140 RBIs in 140 games.

The 1997 season may have been Griffey's best. That year he led the AL in home runs and RBIs and he won the AL MVP award. He also won the Sporting News Major League Player of the Year award and the Players Choice Outstanding Player of the Year award. He had career highs in hits (185), home runs (56), and RBIs (147). He batted .304 in 157 games.

Griffey continued to dominate the AL in power in 1998, once again leading the league in home runs and winning his second Home Run Derby. He finished the season with 180 hits, 33 doubles, a career high 56 home runs, 146 RBIs, and a .284 batting average in a career high 161 games. Defensively, he had one of the best seasons of his career, leading all NL center fielders in putouts. He had a career high 412 putouts and 5 errors in 158 games.

Once again in 1999, Griffey led the AL in home runs and he won the Home Run Derby. He was named the Players Choice Player of the Decade that year. He finished the season with 173 hits, 48 home runs, 134 RBIs, and a .285 batting average in 160 games.

Cincinnati Reds

The Mariners traded Griffey to the Reds on February 10, 2000. He continued to play with Cincinnati through July, 2008. He had a good first season with the Reds, finishing with 141 hits, 40 home runs, 118 RBIs, and a .271 batting average in 145 games in 2000. The following season, he played in just 111 games and he had 104 hits and a .286 batting average.

Griffey suffered from season ending injuries in both 2002 and 2003. Then, in 2004, he ended up on the DL with a hamstring injury. The only shining moment for him in those three seasons came on June 20, 2004, when he hit his 500th career home run.

Griffey came back strong in 2005, winning the NL Comeback Player of the Year award, the Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year award, and the Players Choice Comeback Player of the Year award. He finished the season with 148 hits, 30 doubles, 35 home runs, 92 RBIs, and a .301 batting average in 128 games.

Griffey was injured in September, 2005, and he had knee surgery. He again spent time on the DL in 2006, limiting his playing time to 109 games. It was a poor season for him, with a batting average of just .252.

Griffey had a better and healthier season in 2007, finishing with 146 hits, 30 home runs, 93 RBIs, and a .277 batting average in 144 games. That year, he was awarded the MLB Rawlings All-Time Gold Glove for his outstanding defensive play.

Griffey was traded to the Chicago White Sox on July 31, 2008. He finished the season with just 122 hits and a .249 batting average in 102 games with the Reds and 41 games with the White Sox.

Return to Mariners

Griffey became a free agent on November 3, 2008. He returned to the Mariners on February 18, 2009. He played in 117 games in 2009, but it was not a good season for him. He batted just .214 with 83 hits. The following season, he retired on June 2nd, after batting .184 in 33 games.

Awards and MLB Records

  • Gold Glove (10 times)
  • Silver Slugger award (7 times)
  • AL MVP
  • Players Choice Outstanding Player of the Year
  • Sporting News Major League Player of the Year
  • All Star Game MVP
  • Players Choice Player of the Decade
  • NL Comeback Player of the Year
  • Players Choice Comeback Player of the Year
  • Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year
  • Commissioner's Historic Achievement award
  • Led AL in home runs (4 times)

Career Statistics

Batting statistics for Griffey in 22 seasons (1989-2010) in the major leagues include:

  • 8 seasons with 150 or more hits, with a high of 185 in 1997
  • 6 seasons with 30 or more doubles, with a high of 42 in 1991
  • 9 seasons with 30 or more home runs, with a high of 56 in 1997 and 1998
  • 8 seasons with 100 or more RBIs, with a high of 147 in 1997
  • 8 seasons with a batting average of .300 or better, with a high of .327 in 1991

Career batting statistics for Griffey include:

  • 2,671 games played
  • 2,781 hits
  • 524 doubles
  • 630 home runs
  • 1,836 RBIs
  • 1,779 strikeouts to 1,312 walks
  • .284 batting average
  • .370 on-base percentage
  • .908 OPS

Career fielding statistics for Griffey as a center fielder include:

  • 2,145 games played
  • 5,147 putouts
  • 76 errors
  • .986 fielding percentage

Postseason statistics for Griffey include:

  • 3 postseasons
  • 18 games played
  • 69 at-bats
  • 20 hits
  • 2 doubles
  • 6 home runs
  • 5 stolen bases
  • 11 RBIs
  • 16 strikeouts to 8 walks
  • .290 batting average

Post Playing Career

In 2011, the Mariners hired Griffey as a special consultant. That same year, he received the Commissioner's Historic Achievement award.

Griffey was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2016 on the first ballot with 99.3% of the vote.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Ken Griffey, Jr.
ESPN - Ken Griffey, Jr.
Baseball Reference - Ken Griffey, Jr.

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