Report: Ken Griffey Jr. to retire or be released sometime this month
May 10, 2010, 3:09 PM EST
A pretty major story from Larry LaRue of the Tacoma News-Tribune in which it is reported that the Seattle Mariners will soon urge Ken Griffey, Jr. to retire, and if he doesn’t they’ll release him, most likely this month.
LaRue says “the end is near” for Griffey. The reasons: For one thing, obvious lack of performance. He’s at .205/.265/.234 in 77 at-bats this season with only two extra-base hits
and zero home runs. The man simply can’t hit anymore, as it’s plain to anyone who can read a stat sheet or watch a baseball game. This, of course, is not shocking. More shocking:
Last week, when some members of the press corps asked
manager Don Wakamatsu why he hadn’t used Griffey as a pinch hitter for
Rob Johnson late in a game, Waskamatsu was vague.Two Mariners players, however, weren’t. Both are younger players,
fond of Griffey. Neither had an ax to grind.So why didn’t Wakamatsu go to Junior off the bench.
“He was asleep in the clubhouse,” one player said. “He’d gone back
about the fifth inning to get a jacket and didn’t come back. I went back
in about the seventh inning – and he was in his chair, sound asleep.”
For a man whose value at this point in his career was supposed to be his veteran presence and stability, that’s shockingly poor behavior.
The Mariners just fired their hitting coach. If they insist on keeping Griffey around they could offer him that job. If not, they should make him an ultimatum: quit or be fired. Because there is no place on a Major League roster for someone who pulls crap like that.
Even a Hall of Famer.
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- James fett - May 10, 2010 at 3:25 PM
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That’s a cheap shot, and uncalled for. Let us honor this man for all he has contributed to baseball, including the Seattle Mariners. Sports Editor managing is unbecoming and pretty unwelcome.
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- Joey B - May 10, 2010 at 3:27 PM
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It’s beyond poor behavior. It suggests that something is physically wrong. I’ve never played any sport where I felt the need to nap in the middle of it. I can’t imagine even wanting to. I take a nap almost everyday, but in the middle of a game? How does that even work? Do you feel a wave of fatigue and just go inside and pass out? Unless he was ill and/or on medications.
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- Sam - May 10, 2010 at 3:28 PM
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Well, at least he isn’t juicing up on steroids (judging from his midgut) or raping women…make a little mid-game nap seem harmless.
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- Jack Meoffer - May 10, 2010 at 3:29 PM
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It’s a shame what happened to him in the early 00′s with all his injuries. He was on his way to break the homerun record before the strike in 1994. He had to great seasons of 50+ homeruns in a row and seemed to be on pace to break Aarons record. Then he got hurt and hurt again and that seemed to derail him. It’s too bad but unfortunately things happen. I hope he has a good retirement.
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- baseball fan - May 10, 2010 at 3:30 PM
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I don’t understand how this could be a cheap shot. It’s not editorializing. It’s not an opinion. It’s straight reporting–the man was asleep! What I’m wondering is, who’s going to baby-sit for Milton Bradley once Griffey is gone???
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- DameElaine - May 10, 2010 at 3:38 PM
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I’m in agreement with Joey. The fact that he’s gaining weight where he is and is having trouble hitting (lack of energy/strength) and napping suggest a hypo-thyroid issue or other metabolic issue. My money is on hypo-thyroid, since I have that issue and can tell you it would produce the exact symptoms he seems to have. There were days before I was diagnosed and treated that I would be forced to nap 2-3 times a day.
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- Lois - May 10, 2010 at 3:39 PM
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Wow. The whole team is playing poorly. At least Griffey went to the clubhouse to sleep. I am not seeing any enthusiasm on the field at all.
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- Peanut's Mom - May 10, 2010 at 3:39 PM
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Please don’t bad-mouth the man who has done more for baseball in Seattle than anyone. Should he retire?…maybe, but as a season ticket holder for many years, I love the way the fans respond to him. I love seeing him come out of the dugout. I appreciate and admire him as a ballplayer and as a human being. I feel badly for him that he’s lost his hitting ability right now, but then, we only have 2 with BA’s over 300, so don’t put the blame on him. Don’t you think that he feels the pressure??
Any of you reading this who actually go to games, save your booing for the umps, when necessary, don’t boo your own team.
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- Patrick - May 10, 2010 at 3:39 PM
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*sigh*
Poor Griffey…
Not that this isn’t his fault, but it’s sad.
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- Seamus - May 10, 2010 at 3:41 PM
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Well, since the following players are hitting for an even lower average in the AL, I suppose they should be getting their walking papers too…
Pierzynski, Teixeira, Kotchman, Quentin, Beckham, Figgins, Pena, Overbay, Johnson
Even more in the NL
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- BC - May 10, 2010 at 3:41 PM
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Talk about a guy’s reputation going south. He groused his way out of Seattle, refused to play hurt and groused more in Cincinnati, then gets a hero’s welcome back to Seattle and pulls this garbage. Somewhere in his late 20′s, the loveable kid ceased to exist. Now he’s a fat old man living on his name.
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- HolyKow - May 10, 2010 at 3:44 PM
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LaRue is right. Jr. needs to (gulp) go…Sweeney was knocking the cover off of the ball in the spring. Give him a shot to get you a few more hits till you can figure something out with the DH.
The Kid is a kid no more. Welcome to Seattle, Mr. Hitting Coach for the rest of the year, Ken Griffey Jr.
End of an Era at Safeco, the house that he built…
HK
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- Ed - May 10, 2010 at 3:45 PM
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When Reagan was caught napping during cabinet meetings, he was actually rather proud of the fact.
The Mariners are a bad team going nowhere fast and Griffy is at the very end of one of the greatest careers in the history of baseball. But for injuries in his prime, he would have hit over 800 home runs. Let the man take a nap if he wants to.
Someone who loves him should take him aside and tell him its time to step down.
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- Tom Shumaker - May 10, 2010 at 3:46 PM
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Griffey’s performance in ’09 didn’t warrant a contract offer for this year, to begin with. Some guys just don’t know when to quit. I hope they convince him to hang it up. I’d hate to see him draw a release. He had a great career, but Father Time has caught up with him.
If the Mariners want to release someone, I nominate “Board Game”. He also brings nothing to the party.
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- Patrick - May 10, 2010 at 3:47 PM
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Seamus,
Lets not act like batting average is everything, shall we..? Or at all important…
Most of those players have better OBPs and MUCH better slugging percentages than Griffy.
Most of those players either play excellent defense (Texeira) or a position where bad offense is the norm (Pierzynski), and essentially all of them have a RECENT track record of success. And aren’t old. Sorry, the kid is probably done.
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- DC kid - May 10, 2010 at 3:49 PM
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Elaine, you may be right. It’s also a sign of depression. Having difficulty sleeping at night, sleeping during the day, and not having an interest in what he’s doing. I hope that is not the case. It hurt to see him injured all the time and it really hurts to see him at this stage. Sometimes retiring is for the best but i hope he makes a decision that is best for him and his family.
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- Jamie - May 10, 2010 at 3:52 PM
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I suppose Ken Griffey could have a thyroid problem, but I’ve found that the over-consumption of Little Debbie snack cakes can produce similar symptoms.
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- sigviscious - May 10, 2010 at 3:54 PM
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He was probably up late with his girlfriend. It must be tiring leading two lives….
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- Smarg - May 10, 2010 at 3:57 PM
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He’s trying to stay in for the cash and the women. He’s a goner. Can him.
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- Better than Griffey - May 10, 2010 at 3:57 PM
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He can take naps and not hit at home. Why waste the roster spot?
Oh, and isn’t it just a little possible that his decline in super-human HR #s (& his injuries) could be related to the use of and subsequent cleaning up from steroids?
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- MikeN - May 10, 2010 at 3:59 PM
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Eating too much Little Debbie….isn’t that what got LT in all this trouble?
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- Mike - May 10, 2010 at 4:03 PM
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Here’s my question: Why has Griffey always rec’d a free pass re: steroids? Has he had the media completely buffaloed?
He fits the profile perfectly: HUGE power numbers, big change in body type, broke down WAY earlier than he should have due to injuries.
Then steroid testing comes to BLB and Junior suddenly isn’t worth a sh**.
Wake up people. The guy was a juicer, beginning in 1993. Look at the numbers.
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- sports 101 - May 10, 2010 at 4:06 PM
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Baseball is a business, and Griffey was brought back this year, because just his presence, sells tickets.
He helped this team take the next step last year, but unfortunately this year, has completley lost it.
His bat speed is down, but no one has a prettier swing and miss than Ken.
Seattle will always idol him, as they should, because without him, our baseball team could be in Oklahoma City too!!
We will never forget what he’s done for our baseball life in Seattle.
The the guy has fun, and always conducts himself with class.
So in Ken’s defense,this is not just about baseball on the field, it’s dollars and cents.
As for Milton Bradley, that’s a differnet story, get him out of here.
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- Wade - May 10, 2010 at 4:07 PM
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Yah,good point “fan” Send him (Milton Bradley)packing with Griffey as well! I hate seeing players tring to hold on.
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- Sweet Pea - May 10, 2010 at 4:09 PM
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He’s got to have something physically wrong with him. He could have diabetes. High blood sugars will make you extremely tired and make it very easy to fall asleep any where and any time.
