Ken Griffey Jr. is one of the greatest baseball players of all time, there’s no question about that. He hit 630 career home runs, was a 13-time All-Star, seven-time Silver Slugger, and an MVP over the course of his 22-year career.
And in his last season, the second consecutive year in which he was reunited with the Seattle Mariners, Griffey was caught napping in the clubhouse during a game, which ended up accelerating his quiet exit from the sport.
How a Nap Perhaps Prematurely Ended Ken Griffey Jr.’s Career
It was certainly an unceremonious end for Griffey’s career, who was one of the most popular players of his time, not just because he mashed home runs and played center field with reckless abandon, but because he always approached the game like a big kid, and connected so well with that younger audience.
Though the latter half of his career was often marred by injuries, Griffey was still an incredibly productive hitter for about 20 years. And in 2009, he returned to the Mariners at 39 years old, ready to finish up his career in the place where it all started two decades prior.
Feel-good aspects of the signing aside, Griffey’s career at the plate was fizzling out, as he only hit .208/.310/.369 with 19 home runs and 64 RBI in 562 plate appearances over the 2009 and 2010 seasons.
And in 2010, it all came to a screeching halt when he was allegedly caught napping in the clubhouse after he was finally benched due to his offensive struggles. And it wasn’t so much the actual napping that caused Griffey to abruptly retire – you can’t tell me there aren’t players sneaking away for a nap on occasion – but the fact that two teammates told reporters it happened caused Griffey to become more withdrawn from the rest of the team.
When it comes to the camaraderie inside a clubhouse and the trust that’s built over the course of a long season, snitching on a player like that to the press is akin to the kiss of death. From a relationship perspective among teammates, everything after that is changed, and it’s partly the reason why Griffey just up and left the team in June of 2010, announcing his retirement from the game through a general statement sent out by the Mariners.
Though most people have forgotten the way his career ultimately ended (though he is still being paid by the Cincinnati Reds), and just about anybody who cares about baseball thinks of Griffey in only the most glowing light, it was still a pretty weird way to end a playing career. A nap in the clubhouse may not have been the reason Griffey’s career ended, the circumstances around it might have been the last straw in what ended up being a frustrating final season for The Kid.
(Photo credit: Keith Allison)
