If Ken Griffey Jr. would have stayed injury free, would he have been considered one of the greastest players ever and would he be chasing Hank's home run record right now?
2007-05-25 05:15:17 · 19 answers · asked by K. Carlton 2 in Sports ➔ Baseball
Unfortunately for Griffey Jr., he has had all those injuries. If he could have had the number of injuries he had cut in half, I think he'd be on pace to break Hank's record, and he seems like he would have done it honestly. If he would have stayed INJURY FREE, he would have broken it already, and no questions asked he would be considered the greatest ever. A real shame how his career ended up. :(
2007-05-25 05:24:30 · answer #1 · answered by bnsymv 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think so. Jr was, and still is, one of my favorite players. And it was talked about a lot during the year McGwire broke the record that Griffey slowed down towards the end of the season because he didn't like the spotlight, which I feel he may have done on other occasions as well. And if it wasn't for the injuries, he probably would be pressing Hank Aaron for the record in due time. As it is he'll still likely come close to 700 if he plays a few more healthy years.
2007-05-25 12:27:07 · answer #2 · answered by immortal321 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The greatest ever? No. One of the greatest ever? Yes. There are several who fall into the same category. Mickey Mantle was greater than Griffey but he played an entire career hurt. He played in mammoth ballparks and there was no such thing as the DH. If heathy we would have been looking at 800 or 900 home runs. But this is all speculation. It's fun to talk about but the fact is, we will never know. From a personal point of view I wish it was Griffey rather than Bonds. As least it would be an honest record.
2007-05-25 14:08:32 · answer #3 · answered by Yankee Dude 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No.
Injuries have hurt him as well as never going to the World Series. I think he was a great player during the 90's and if he would of stayed healthy, sure he could of made a run at Hank's record (although he might be chasing Bonds unfortunately). But even in his prime and the personnel that Mariners had during that strecth, they never produced in the post season. He never helped Cincinatti get to one of the elite teams in the NL. The past couple years have not been great for strong teams. Look at St. Louis winning the World Series with only 84 regular season wins. He should of made some type of impact but didn't. Another reason he is overlooked is that once he left Seattle, they had better teams. We'll see how his numbers are in 3 years and to see if he can help his current team win something.
2007-05-25 12:54:11 · answer #4 · answered by Art S 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Playing in the Kingdome contributed to a lot of those home runs in the first 10 years of career. But the injuries have contributed to his lack of production in Cincinnati. The fact he rarely worked out or stretched properly in the prime of his career leads me to believe Griffey is soft. He also has a very hard time with the media and cries about things all the time. In my opinion he wouldn’t have been able to handle the stress of chasing down a huge record like the HR. Would never have broken it even if he stayed healthy. I think he could have got close to 700 homers though.
2007-05-25 12:44:36 · answer #5 · answered by john f 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think part of being the greatest (or among the greatest) is to remain healthy. I live in Seattle, and watched Junior for years. One of the things that may have hurt him in the long run was that it all came so easy for him. He never was a big film/study guy. He never really warmed up, he just went out and played. Once he hit his 30's, it really caught up to him. The injuries mounted and cost him a lot of numbers.
He still has the prettiest swing in the game.
2007-05-25 13:13:49 · answer #6 · answered by cantthinkofanygoodnames 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes. If he had stayed healthy he would have 3000 hits, 700 hrs, and 2000 rbi by now. He's only 37 and he could still get those number of he doesn't get injured and plays til he's 42, but it's going to be hard for him to achieve that in the NL without the DH.
2007-05-25 12:56:40 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is difficult to operate in a world of what ifs. Saying that if Jr. would have stayed healthy he would be one of the best ever is like saying if a player had more talent he would be on pace to be the greatest ever!
2007-05-25 13:05:55 · answer #8 · answered by sigeptxbeta02 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Possibly, he should have used weight training instead of not doing anything to train for the season and he might have avoided some of those injuries or they might have been less severe, it's a pattern with him, maybe sometimes he just doesn't want to play hurt like most guys do.
2007-05-25 12:49:18 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Without a doubt. My greatest “at the game” baseball memory is watching him (as a Mariner) hit a grand slam at the Ball Park in Arlington. (Texas Rangers)
He’s got the sweetest swing there ever was.
2007-05-25 13:08:54 · answer #10 · answered by None Profound 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋