Junior’s return, Junior’s swan song

Reports that Ken Griffey Jr. has decided to return to Seattle 21 years after he made his debut there in 1989 will cheer faithful fans and give the team another bat that can serve as DH or in the crowded, still largely powerless, outfield. It gives the club a direct link to its best years, a veteran presence in the clubhouse that is leaderless, and offers fans a good show while the rebuilding begins. Expect Griffey to platoon in left field, but it would be best if he focuses on his bat at DH. 

“This is the one player, at the end of the day, that we thought we needed to bring home,” GM Jack Zduriencik told MLB.com.

For a reported $2 million in base salary, plus bonuses that could add $2.5 million, Griffey’s 18 to 22 home runs in 500 at-bats is a relative bargain for the team. His knee, though surgically repaired in the off-season, remains a question mark. In order to maximize his at-bats, hopefully Junior will be satisfied at DH, settling into a mentoring role that could extend into a post-retirement role with the Mariners.

After Griffey recovered his health in 2005, he rebounded with 35 home runs, a .301 batting average and slugged .576. Girrffey certainly could add on the field for another year, or more, based on reports that he’s lost weight and is more fit than last year, when he batted .249, with 18 home runs and a slugging percentage of .424.

But ultimately, this is about returning the class to an organization. Griffey, one of the greatest players of his generation—if not the greatest, based on the help his closest peers had from drugs—will be welcomed by fans and immediately be able to assert some leadership in the clubhouse. Whether this is his last year on the field or he plays longer, as a Mariner he will feted throughout his farewell tour of the league and at home, selling tickets and representing Seattle fans when he is voted in Cooperstown.

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