Griffey’s Jock
May 15, 2007 by Geoff Young
Filed under Personalities
I’m late to the party on this one, but it’s still cool. A fan in LA heckled Ken Griffey Jr., and Junior gave him a jock strap in return. There’s more to it, but that’s the gist of the story.
A few years ago, when Griffey still called Seattle home, the Mariners came to San Diego to play the Padres. My wife and I had field-level seats in the second or third row along the first-base line.
At one point, Griffey was fooled badly on a pitch and took a horrendous swing that resulted in his bat flying into the stands. It hit a woman, and I think she was hurt, though not badly.
Griffey, visibly concerned, resumed his at-bat and drew a walk. On reaching first base, he spotted the woman, called out to her and, assured that she was okay, broke into a big smile and gave a thumbs-up sign.
It might not seem like a big deal, but Griffey didn’t need to do that. I’m glad he did.
