Another Year for The Kid?

September 4, 2009 · Paul Raymond · Jump to comments

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Now that the season is drawing to a close let the debates begin. Who will retire? Who won’t? Will he switch teams? For the Seattle Mariners the main debate is will The Kid, Ken Griffey Jr, retire and if he doesn’t will he stay in Seattle?

Griffey Jr isn’t as productive as he once was, he’s know a designated hitter and a fourth outfielder. His offense isn’t what it used to be, .218 average and 11 homers in 325 at bats this season. But for the Mariners, he’s still their spark plug.

Ichiro Suzuki gets all the love, and he should the guy is a machine. The Kid thou is the one who makes that team tick. The Mariners have gone from a team of mainly nobodies who couldn’t get their act together.

With Griffey aboard they’ve got a leader, someone who can teach the kids the right way to play the game, on and off the field. With Griffey, they’ve got a guy who can captivate a fan base that had become almost non-existent.

More importantly? They’ve become a team that can compete with anybody. Their 71-64 record and presence in the playoff race tells you that.

If he decides to stay in the game, I’ve got no doubt the Mariners will do whatever it takes to keep him there. The fans may revolt if they don’t, especially with him no longer playing for the money, evident by his $2 million contract plus incentives.

They just got to show him some love and he’ll be back where he loves to play the most, Seattle.

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