Griffey, Ken Jr. (George Kenneth Jr.)
Baseball
b. Nov. 21, 1969, Donora, PA
Griffey's father, Ken Griffey Sr., was a major league outfielder from 1973 through 1991. They were teammates during Ken Jr.'s first three seasons with the Seattle Mariners, becoming the only father-son combination to play in the major leagues at the same time.
A left-handed outfielder, the 6-foot-3, 205-pound Griffey spent just two seasons in the minor leagues before joining the Mariners. After batting .264 as a rookie, he hit .300 or better seven of the next eight seasons, with a high of .327 in 1991. He hit 56 home runs in two consecutive seasons, 1997 and 1998.
The winner of ten consecutive Gold Glove awards, from 1990 through 1999, Griffey led the league's outfielders with 10 assists in 1989. In 1993, he tied a major league record by hitting home runs in 8 consecutive games.
In 2000, Griffey refused to re-sign with Seattle, complaining that management wasn't committed to building a top-level team. He signed a nine-year, $116.5-million contract with the Cincinnati Reds. He led the team with 40 home runs, 118 RBIs, and 100 runs scored in his first season, but knee and hamstring injuries limited him to just 111 games in 2001, many of them only as a pinch-hitter.
Injuries have continued to plague him since then. Griffey got off to a poor start in 2002 and then was sidelined by a torn right patellar tendon and a torn hamstring. Early in the 2003 season, he dislocated his right shoulder making a diving attempt for a catch and had only 166 at-bats. He started strong in 2004, collecting 20 home runs and 60 RBI in his first 80 games and hitting his 500th home run on June 20. Shortly after that, though, he went on the disabled list with a torn hamstring again. He finally got back into action in early August.