| Christopher Reina. 20th February, 2009 - 3:22 pm
 There are two distinct factions in the world of sports that could use some positive, uplifting news this week; one was the MLB and the other being city of Seattle.
While baseball remained transfixed on the Alex Rodriguez saga, I think sports fans in the city where A-Rod first cut his teeth were more concerned with Kevin Durant's entry onto the national stage during the Rookie Challenge. If it wasn't clear already, Durant is well on his way to becoming one of the best six or seven players in all of basketball and in a youthful, exuberant way that elicits some comparison to Ken Griffey Jr.
The same KGJ that was the first overall pick in 1987 by the Mariners. The same KGJ that was infamously on that '89 Upper Deck card, hit long (natural) homeruns and helped lead Seattle into the playoffs in '95 and '97.
But unlike Durant, who was kidnapped by Clay Bennett, Griffey orchestrated his own exit out of Seattle to Cincinnati- and a decade later, with the urging of the other greatest living center fielder (Willie Mays), he has returned with a $2 million deal.
We know that employees of Amazon will come out to Safeco, have a couple pre-game pints of Hefiweisen at the Pyramid Alehouse, blast Soundgarden (or Mother Love Bone if they want to go back to his rookie season) and reminisce about their Puget Sound childhood of watching Griffey next door at the Kingdome; Griffey even factored attendance incentives into this deal.
But what will this mean for the Mariners on the field?
The Mariners have little reason to believe they will be within single-digits of the AL West leaders by the All-Star break, but as long as Griffey avoids lefties, he is still a productive hitter.
He hasn't hit lefties well since 2005, but he has had decent numbers against righties:
2006: .869 OPS (.523 slugging)
2007: .943 OPS (.540 slugging)
2008: .841 OPS (.462 slugging)
The slugging drop last season is significant and disconcerting, but is there any doubt Griffey is worth $2 million as a specialist against the Kevin Millwood, Vicente Padilla and Jered Weavers of the AL West?
Leaving him off the field defensively and also out of the lineup against lefties will protect him and maximize the on-field return.
Furthermore, Seattle designated hitters had a .608 OPS in 2008, which was the worst in the AL by nearly 100 points. Griffey will beat that almost on reputation alone.
With Griffey back, perhaps there is hope Durant will return to the Emerald City as a member of the Seattle Hornets in 2019?
Grade for Mariners: A |
