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Ken Griffey Jr. Way update

September 7, 2010 @ 2:50 am (Updated: 3:46 pm - 3/28/11 )

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A little over three months ago Ken Griffey Jr. retired from baseball in Seattle, with a simple statement: "I've come to a decision today to retire from Major League Baseball as an active player...My hope is that my teammates can focus on baseball and win a championship for themselves and for the great fans of Seattle, who so very much deserve one."

Griffey retired on June 2nd, 23 years to the day after he was drafted. As soon as Griffey announced he was done with baseball as a player, he was gone, on the road home to Florida. That same day, Seattle Mariner fan Glen Garnett started a campaign to rename a Seattle street after the baseball legend. Are we any closer to having it happen?

"I've loved this guy so much because he has a natural swing. He is amazing in baseball," says Garnett.

Garnett has never met Griffey, but he has been relentless in trying to get a part of 1st Avenue in front of Safeco Field renamed in honor of Junior - someone who was an inspiration to a generation of boys who were just starting to play baseball, he says.

KenGriffeyWay copy

"When kids played baseball in their back yard or out on the diamond they'd think 'I wanna be Ken Griffey Jr.' because he was so polite. He was so unique. He was so powerful," Garnett says. "People wanted to be like him."

Before there can be a Ken Griffey Jr. Way, about 10 businesses on a block along 1st Avenue would have to change their addresses. In hopes of convincing them to give in, Garnett launched a new website this week - KenGriffeyJrWay.com - where people can sign a petition supporting the name change.

And he's not stopping there. Garnett wants to start a non-profit foundation to raise money for a statue in Griffey's likeness, and later raise money to help children in Griffey's name.

A couple of Seattle City Council members support the idea of a name change, but they're waiting for businesses on that stretch of 1st to get behind the effort. In the meantime, they've suggested giving the Kid an "honorary" street name.

"People are saying they don't want that," says Garnett. "Edgar Martinez has his own street, why can't Griffey have his own street?"

Griffey1

In this photo from the AP's Elaine Thompson was taken one day before Ken Griffey Jr. announced his retirement on June 2nd of this year. Thompson also took the classic photo below on October 8, 1995 with Griffey smiling from beneath a pile of teammates after he scored the winning run in the bottom of the 11th inning against the New York Yankees in Seattle.

ClassicGriffey

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Comments (20)


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  • shadyachmed wrote...
    societies proirities...
    September 7, 2010 10:56 am
    no wonder we're in the toilet... opiated sheep. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJtS9CuyuaU&feature=player_embedded#!
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  • dori monson fan wrote...
    name a road after him
    September 7, 2010 11:06 am
    And put a huge toll on it. And make sure it has lots of pot holes. That way it will be a good reflection of griffey. It will be very expensive and move slowly. Lol. Seriously though, was there ever a player who hit more home runs against juiced pitchers while not juicing himself? Nope. None. Griffey is arguably the best player in the history of the game. Name the new 520 after him, and give it a big toll...
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  • mailmanzkid wrote...
    Best Roid-Free Player Ever
    September 7, 2010 11:27 am
    630 Home Runs (417 with M's) 1836 RBI .284 career average Best Center Fielder 1990-2000 12 year Mariner You should be privileged Seattle, you rarely see great athletes in your town. This guy is probably the best player in the history of the game.
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  • KevinE1 wrote...
    Griffey one of the few steroid free in an era of steroids
    September 7, 2010 12:20 pm
    Its unfortunate that their are still people with the misguided belief that Ken Griffey Jr., demanded a trade out of Seattle, it was actually Pat Gillick's (then GM of Mariners), decision on whether to trade A-Rod or Griffey. Gillick has stated on numerous radio interviews since Griffeys trade it was one of the toughest if not the toughest decisions as a GM he has ever had to make. He has admitted he made a mistake and if he had it to do over he would have traded A-Rod instead of Griffey Jr. Sure Griffey laid out a few reasonable demands with the deal once the wheels were in motion, (e.g. playing in Cincinnatti), but who wouldn't have done that.
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  • caspian wrote...
    giant middle finger
    September 7, 2010 1:06 pm
    The street should have 2 giant middle fingers, 1 for each time JR flipped off Seattle. Good Bye JR and Good Bye 1995
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  • wonderfullone wrote...
    artimus
    September 7, 2010 1:13 pm
    Nothing is as 'boorish' as commenting about a comment that is totally in context, and saying that it wasn't.

    You clearly defend the mush-heads, feel free, as I will continue to call them out on their BS.

    Still, a better idea than 'renaming an entire county' for someone who did nothing here.

    BTW, you mush-heads will eventually rename history, you'll just call it 'mystery'.

    That will be great...

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  • Loud Larry wrote...
    I-90 between Butte & Bozeman
    September 7, 2010 1:17 pm
    Ken Griffey Jr. Way...out of town.
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  • DickeyDoo wrote...
    CG58 wrote... DickeyDoo ain't got a clue
    September 7, 2010 3:03 pm
    The reason he was great was because when he was hitting the ball as a youth people speculated that he would break Hank Aarons home run record. ( That was the hype). He spent the rest of his career time disabled and recovering and lost his drive (Under constant repair - Letdown). Nintendo and Nike used his image to sell games and Sports Gear giving him so much resistance and security that all he had to do between 1995 and 2009 was show up and collect his check, hang out and spend money on charity. But every year there was the hype about KG 24 making a huge comeback (Hype) and every year it fizzled. Then he move to another team because his pre season hype was no longer effective in Seattle. (Letdown). So he came back for half a season and look what we got out of him, Hype and Letdown until he was caught sleeping in the dugout and got called out on it( constant repair). So he quit for the good of the team - (TRUTH). But as you said, I know nothing.....
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  • andy123 wrote...
    Some like him, some don't
    September 7, 2010 7:13 pm
    The older he got, the less I liked him. So my suggestion is why don't we just have a life size sculpture of him sleeping. Statues are motionless.....
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  • Roark wrote...
    Naming something after a jerk!
    September 8, 2010 10:27 am
    Griffey was an arrogant, spoiled brat. I doubt he'll show up for any street naming, any bronze bust at Safeco, or any other honor bestowed. To do so would acknowledge people loved and looked up to him and expected him to live up to all that. He's NOT INTERESTED.
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