because what this team needs is to look forward, not backward

The minute that starts happening I will know that the Zduriencik revolution has been completed. And I cannot WAIT for that day. Nostalgia is a waste of time.

that ship has sailed.

Time to move on.

This is where emotions and intellect conflict within me.

Nostalgia is good.

    * I guess this one pretty much depends on what you think it means to be a fan. Some people want to win, and other people just want to feel happy and entertained, no matter the reasons why. Neither one is better than the other. The former group would presumably be less than enthused by a Griffey acquisition. The latter group, meanwhile, would wet its collective trousers.

Actually, I think I have one foot completely in both camps. My intense fandom of baseball completely coincides with Griffey’s pro career w/the M’s (actually maybe a little bit before then — 1986). While he was only about my 3rd favorite player during those days (Buhner, RJ…) he still meant a metric f-ton to me. I’ll admit to being in tears seeing him last year finally coming back to Seattle.

I do agree that he won’t help this team, and could possibly do more harm than good.

Still:

The parallels to the Kingdome, too, are there. I absolutely had some of my best sports memories ever there — being Mascot of the Week (and getting to meet Pete Gross in the press box, tour the locker room, have my photo on the big screen, and greeting Dr. Dan Dornink, Largent and Zorn on the sidelines during the pre-game), seeing the Sonics and the M’s there too. I bawled when it was imploded, and still to this day can’t watch that footage without shedding a tear. Still, I’d been to Safeco. I knew how incredibly good it was to have the new stadium. I knew the future would be good for baseball in Seattle, and that had they not moved out of the Kingdome, then new memories at Safeco would not be able to be created. Likewise — moving past Griffey gives us a better future, both immediately and long-term.

Nostalgia plays a HUGE part of my fandom, though. Count me on the list of people who’d like to see a post-waiver deadline acquisition for Cibney Bello or some such irrelevant minor leaguer in August if and when the M’s are waaaaaay out of it. Give him a victory lap at the end of the year. I fully expect him to be DL’d anyway, so…

and that is exactly why I don’t want them to sign Griffey. The first time he was here, he was the best player in the game for a decade. He had the sweetest swing I’ve ever seen, he was amazing in center field and he made unbelievable catches almost every day.

But now he’s a shell of his former glory. I would rather not see him come back and struggle out one last mediocre year in a Mariner uniform.

And what if further injury or regression issues cause him to “retire” like Richie Sexson? Are people in this city really going to want to remember him that way? Granted, I don’t have the same history with him as a Mariner that a lot of other fans do, but I would think that would just plain suck to have to witness. I know it might be a huge “what if”, but the possibility is there…

I’m going to bookmark this and link it every time I see someone suggest bringing Ken Griffey Jr. back to Seattle. Which won’t be often because I don’t read the comments from Baker’s blog or from other various morons, but it never hurts to be prepared.

I really wish the Reds never had played us so we didn’t have the opportunity to hear Griffey get emotional and voice his desire to finish his career with the M’s.

Anyway, let’s try and focus on falling in love with the “new” Griffey instead of getting nostalgic about the old one. I really wish Felix Hernandez would get even half the love Griffey receives.

…And yet some desires in sports are irrational. Despite knowing that he might not be very good…at all, I would love to see it. Nostalgia doesn’t mean anything in terms of wins and losses, but as stated that is not the point of nostalgia. Frankly, I think anyone who dismisses nostalgia for Griffey out of hand is ignoring their own inclinations regarding whatever it is that “takes them back.”

Yes, we are closer to being competitive than we were a year ago, but we’re still relying upon an awful lot to go right in order to be division contenders (Yuni returning to some semblance of form, Lopez maintaining or increasing his value, Clement beginning to hit, Wlad beginning to hit, Kenji rebounding, Guiterrez hitting with regular playing time, Miguel Batista returning to form in the bullpen, the top of the pen sorting itself out, Felix breaking out, Silva having some sort of rebound, and Morrow’s performance are all question marks).

From a “winning” perspective, would I rather have Abreu or Dunn for those DH ABs, yes…yes I would. If that’s not happening for whatever reason though, then I see no reason why we can’t let Griffey ride off into the sunset here.

Frankly, after all we’ve seen happen, I’d be surprised if we did sign him…but all I ask is that if we do end up signing Jr., that people remember what that means to (dare I say) the majority of the fanbase, and save their vitriol for if/when he actually starts stinking at the plate. After all, that one signing can’t undo all of the great things that M’s ownership and Dr. Z have done this off-season.

It certainly wouldn’t represent a philosophical swing back toward everything we used to despise about how the Mariners ran business, the reasoning for his signing have already been spelled out…it’s a special circumstance and I highly doubt we’d see another signing like that again while Dr. Z’s in charge.

Probably the most difficult thing would be trying to figure out how to deal with him in the event that he totally sucks, since the Mariners wouldn’t exactly be able to bench Ken Griffey Jr.

This would be my biggest fear on bringing in Griffey. Bringing him in would basically lead to roster inflexibility due to the fact Griffey becomes a sacred cow as soon as he puts on a Mariner uniform.

Scenario: Wakamatsu wants to win an upcoming home series but the opposition just happen to be sending out three lefty starters. Wakamatsu wants to maximize his team’s win potential by Griffey on the bench ready to pinch hit at least 2 out of the 3 games if not all 3. Oh, but fans aren’t happy because they paid to see Ken Griffey Jr. in the lineup. Front Office feels the pressure and starts pushing for Griffey to be in the lineup by any means necessary.

I understand what Griffey means to Seattle but no siree-bob do I want him signed. In addition, the only way this ends up being a “last harrah” or “victory lap” for him would be if he sucks. If he is miraculously able to hit 20-25 homeruns what stops him from wanting to play some more!? Remember, he’s out there to prove that he can still play. If he wants to play another year but Z decides against signing him do fans get pissed that they let him walk again? And heaven forbid if Armstrong/Lincoln decide to step in and sign him to a multi-year contract. Now our confidence is shaken in the ability of the FO to let Jack have free-reign over the team.

Signing Ken Griffey Jr. seems like it opens up a world of trouble. It’s like a free agent landmine bigger than both Jarrod Washburn and Carlos Silva put together, not necessarily in terms of roster construction but in terms of potential repercussions.

It would awesomely nostalgic if he was robbing people of home runs in Center and hitting homers in bunches and whatnot, but not that he’s an old man, what’s there to want?

If we’re out of contention come September then he can convince whatever team he is on to release him so he can sign a one month contract with the Mariners. Let him DH for a few weeks, then in game 162 let him play center.

Everybody is happy.

It was boring.

I remember watching Junior play. I remember his grace in the field and that sweet sweet swing, and of course I remember the dogpile. I wasn’t aware of the controversy surrounding his leaving until recently—I simply loved watching him.

But why, why, why, would I like to see him put on that beloved 24 and take the field now? I consider myself a hopeless romantic and that is going too far even for me. I want to keep the memories of when he was at the top of the game rather than be saddened by what I see now.

I have wondered (like Rick Griffin) what would have happened to Griffey’s legs if he’d stayed here.

Far, Far, Away.

The Mariner’s prodigal son returns!
  
Ken Griffey Jr. becomes the Mariner’s new gate greeter!
Before every home game, dressed in a vantage era uniform, Griffey will welcome fans, shake hands and take pictures with you and your children.
At the end of every game Griffey will stand at the home plate gate, reciting the ancient tales of The M’s Miracle Year of 19 hundred and 95.
Sign him to a million dollars a year for the rest of his natural life. Then we could bury him in center field.

Everyone would love it.

Seriously, signing him to play LF/DH would be just as ridiculous, insulting and fan friendly as making him an official greeter. At least, as a greeter, Griffey would never get booed or injured as he would if he started every game.