Griffey: M’s Picked A-Rod Over Me

Ken Griffey, Jr.

He left not because of money or because he wanted to be closer to his family, but because he felt disrespected by the organization:

When it became clear the Mariners were going to have difficulty re-signing both Griffey and Alex Rodriguez, a team official approached Griffey and asked, “Who should we trade?”"I refused to answer,” says Griffey, who declined to name the official. “That was not my job. So they went and asked the next person.

“I got traded. He stayed one year. Then he left too.”

Let’s assume that Griffey’s not talking about the Butch Huskey trade. He’s talking about Alex Rodriguez.

So, if you believe Griffey, Alex Rodriguez told the team he’d stay if they kept Griffey, then took the money and ran. Hmmmm. Not out of character, obviously. Griffey adds that the M’s offered him more money than he eventually got from the Reds.

I’m not sure I do believe Griffey, and I sort-of hope he retracts what he said. Many of the people who were in the Mariner front office then are in the Mariner front office now, and they probably aren’t going to like Griffey making them look stupid. I want Griffey back in a Mariner uniform, and talk like this is not going to help.

Griffey’s ready to go, saying: “I want to be in position to win a championship. I’m not strong-arming anybody, but that’s the way it is.”

Ah well…that would seem to rule out the Mariners.

M’s President Chuck Armstrong had this to say about Griffey possibly returning: “I think everybody in Seattle would like to see him retire in a Mariners uniform. He was born a Mariner. And I’d like to see him finish up as a Mariner. I can’t say much because he is property of the Cincinnati Reds, but he always will have a special place in my heart, and everyone here in Seattle.”

Damn straight. Make the deal! Thank you.