Seattle Mariners News: Leave Ken Griffey Jr Alone
By Todd Pheifer
Aug 10, 2013; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Mariners former outfielder Ken Griffey Jr addresses the Seattle Mariners team in the dugout during an induction ceremony into the Seattle Mariners hall of fame before the game between the Seattle Mariners and the Milwaukee Brewers at Safeco Field. Mandatory Credit: Steve Dykes-USA TODAY Sports
Ken Griffey Jr had an amazing career with the Seattle Mariners, and he helped create some the greatest moments in Seattle sports history. Now, it would appear, he would like to stay out of the spotlight. Perhaps we should respect that.
Griffey made headlines recently after a less-than-enthusiastic interview with ESPN:
Now, did Griffey behave in a particularly professional manner? Not exactly. To his credit, he did publicly apologize and he blamed sickness on his lack of energy. Still, there are those that are going to skeptical of this excuse. If he really didn’t want to be interviewed, perhaps he should have just refused.
He had the look of a man that simply did not want to be there. Perhaps he had a contractual requirement with Upper Deck and he was participating in this interview out of legal and financial obligation. If there are other contractual obligations, something tells me that Upper Deck might not call him again.
Regardless of the reason, it is fair to suggest that Junior deserves to be left alone. If you look at his post-baseball life, he has kept a fairly low profile. He could be out there making commercials, doing analyst work, appearing on talk shows and showing up at parties. Instead, it would appear that he is content to enjoy retirement and only make an appearance when he is truly needed.
In addition, we don’t know what is going on in Junior’s life. Maybe he was just having a bad day, or maybe other things are going on. Ultimately, that is none of our business and it is not necessarily fair for fans to rip him on Twitter because he didn’t feel like talking that day.
Again, Griffey is not without blame in this situation. He did apologize, and it seemed sincere. Let’s just remember that despite his greatness as a player, Junior is still just a regular person.
Maybe, at this phase in his life, he wants to be left alone. If not, he will probably let us know.