Ken Griffey Jr. Is Retiring

This is still shocking and sad.

Thanks for everything, Junior, but YAY!

… but it sucks a TINY bit to hear it for real. It was obvious that he was FAR past done… but no sendoff? Great news, but Griffey is done. Forever. Hopefully people can remember him for his wonderful career and not his horrible last couple years with the M’s.

Wish it would of worked out better for you in 2010 Junior, we still love you and THANK YOU! (for being a great player and retiring).

a bunch of ground balls past 2nd base.

I am equally sad and relieved.

The dark ages of Grifflent ceased throughout the land.

It’s a shame it had to end like this, but you are the reason I became an M’s fan.

I spent all of 2009 rooting for Brett Favre to go down in a brutal and horrific injury. When it almost happened in the NFC Championship game I was sickened. “This is awful. Not like this.”

This is a little like that.

But I never really had huge Griffey love. My love was tied to Edgar and Dan Wilson.

We all knew it needed to happen, but way to go out with a whimper.

Too bad DFAing Kanekoa couldn’t wait a couple days.

it would be alot more sad if this season wasn’t such a disaster, but atleast its over. Next up: Junior as assistant batting coach?

But I immediately have only good feelings about Griffey again, and I’m hoping most other Seattle fans feel the same way.

I still kind of wanted him to play an inning in center field when it really didn’t matter though. Both for nostalgia and entertainment purposes.

You’ll always be a Mariner, Griffdawg.

And hero to many including myself. I won’t remember these few months, i’ll remember the other 21 years. You are the best.

From a Mariners point of view for the season, this is only positive

It’s still running at good speed

This makes everyone look better.

It is just now being mentioned

I won’t even remember these two months, and will instead remember the perfect ending.

I’m sure they’ll do a Griffeyday though in the next couple weeks

Thanks for the memories Jr!

The degree to which Jr hosed the M’s when he left the first time?

I know the average Seattle fan is a bit sentimental- but it’s so odd to me how much love Jr gets, when he forced he way off the team. It’s never made sense to me that he gets loved and people still hate A-Rod.

I knew this had to happen, but goddamn if my eyes aren’t watering right now.

-I remember buying his candy bar.
-I remember pulling his Upper Deck rookie card and thinking it was the best card ever.
-I remember watching him rob Jesse Barfield of his 200th HR. {at 1:54. Bonus: Randy sighting!}
(Jesse with his hands on his hips is the best part.)
-The slide in ’95.
-When he came back to us as a Red and called Seattle “home.”

I need to stop now, but I know this was the right move. My heart just needs some time to accept it.

Thank you for giving me a reason to watch sports while growing up, Griffey and Walter Jones. Without Griffey, my love of baseball wouldn’t be the same.

For all you’ve done for this team.

I know your career didn’t end the way you hoped but the rest of your career more than makes up for that.

Legend.

My views on Griffey are a bit skewed. As a result, all my fondest memories come from this:

In many of those dark pre-1995 years.

My fondest early memory of Griffey is him and his father hitting back to back jacks in 1990. Special moment.

She said that recently Griffey had been looking for something he could do with Taryn— and that she had expressed interest in flying, so they were taking flying lessons. Shannon said when the team flew into Tampa on the off day, you could see cars for various players waiting on the tarmac, next to the players bus. Junior, instead of getting in a car to go home to Orlando, she said he walked past them all to a private plane, took off his sports coat, put on the headphones, checked in with his flight instructor, and turned around to wave at the players and coaches, a huge smile on his face.

She said she loved the thought of him literally flying into the sunset, having so much to look forward to with his family in his retirement.

Here’s my two cents: I was born and raised here in Puget Sound, Griffey was my idol growing up. I spend hours mimicking his swing in the backyard. Then when he left, it left like my heart was ripped out. I still followed his career in Cincinnati, but it wasn’t the same. Once he came back to Seattle, I fell in love all over again. Should he have retired after last year? Absolutely. Did I like him dragging down the team this year? NO. But he will always have a huge place in my heart.

Today is the end of an era for a legend. He was a class act on and off the field throughout his career. One of the sweetest swings and best smiles the game has ever seen. Thanks for everything Jr. You will be missed.

Probably overdue.

And he hit a walk-off grand slam. As illegitimate of a home run as it was (especially since it was in Spring Training), that memory will always stick with me.

I have these strange mixed feelings today, because I first started rooting for Griffey when I was 6 in 1994. My family recently sold the house we built when I was ten. It was like the book had finally closed on a major part of my childhood. This feels the same way.

Now that that’s out of the way, though…. FUCK YES NOW WE CAN MOVE BACK TOWARDS A SEMBLANCE OF A MAJOR LEAGUE ROSTER IT’S ABOUT FUCKING TIME I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS DAY FOR MONTHS AND IT’S FINALLY HERE AND I’M OH SO HAPPY.

and also a little bitter…it didn’t have to be this way, he was paraded off the field on the shoulders of his teammates last year for God’s sake. I wish he had been able to see as clearly as many of us did that it wasn’t going to get any better then that.

That being said, thank you Griffey…your play in the ‘90s eased my transition from child sheep follower of the Angels to the rabid, diehard M’s fan I am today.

Looking forward to that HOF speech!

Just, goddamnit.

and I am overcome with sadness that he is gone. :9 :( :(

Thanks for the effortless swing, the spectacular catches that you made look almost routine, the tickling, the ballpark, the franchise, the backwards caps, the homers, the pranks, the grin.

I’ve been lurking here for a while and I’ve watched the M’s for 9 years. I guess this is a good place to make my first post here.

I’m glad I got a chance to watch Griffey hit a homer in the flesh last year, even if it was off Barry Zito. It would’ve been nice if he had gone out a hero last year, but I guess he wanted to give it one last go.