Griffey, Piazza took different paths to Baseball Hall of Fame
Griffey, Piazza took different paths to Baseball Hall of Fame
Dubbed “The Natural” for his effortless excellence at the plate and in center field, Griffey, the first No. 1 pick to be selected for enshrinement, hasn’t followed form since his selection in January.
When he visited Cooperstown in late May for a mini-orientation, Griffey chose not to take the customary introductory tour of the Hall that has become sort of a tradition in recent years.
Induction day promises to be an extremely emotional moment for Griffey because his mom, Birdie, and father, former Cincinnati Reds star Ken Sr., both cancer survivors and integral to his rise to stardom, also will be part of the celebration.
Griffey played 22 big-league seasons with the Mariners, Reds and White Sox and was named on a record 99.32 percent of ballots cast, an affirmation of sorts for his squeaky-clean performance during baseball’s steroids era.
Griffey also was named American League MVP in 1997, drove in at least 100 runs in eight seasons, and won seven Silver Slugger Awards.
In the 1995 ALDS, he became just the second player in major-league history to hit five home runs in a single postseason series (Reggie Jackson of the Yankees in the 1977 World Series is the other).
Like Yankees great Mickey Mantle before him, fans are left to wonder what more Griffey might have accomplished had his health not become a hindrance.
From 2001 to ’04 he averaged fewer than 80 games per year while suffering through hamstring tears, knee problems, a dislocated shoulder and ankle tendon ruptures.
Healthy again in 2005, Junior slugged 35 home runs and captured the NL Comeback Player of the Year Award.
Two years later, he had his last standout season — 144 games, 30 homers, 93 RBIs — and earned his final All-Star Game selection.
Taken in the draft after Hall of Fame manager Tommy Lasorda, a close friend of Piazza’s father, put in a good word, Piazza struggled.
[...] it all clicked almost suddenly for Piazza, hitting 52 home runs in the minors before getting called up by the Dodgers in September 1992.
Perhaps even more impressive, Piazza, a .308 career hitter, posted six seasons with at least 30 home runs, 100 RBIs and a .300 batting average.
Broadcaster Graham McNamee was honored posthumously Saturday with the Ford C. Frick Award for excellence in baseball broadcasting, and Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy received the J.G. Taylor Spink Award for meritorious contributions to baseball writing.
Stats: 630 home runs (6th all-time), 1,836 RBIs (15th) 2,781 hits, .284 batting average, 1,662 runs scored, 5,271 total bases (13th).
Awards: 1997 American League MVP, 13-time All-Star, 10 Gold Gloves, 7 Silver Slugger Awards.
Made major-league debut on Opening Day 1989 against the defending American League champion A’s and doubled off Dave Stewart in his first at-bat. ...
Stats: 427 home runs (major- league-record 396 as a catcher), 1,335 RBIs (4th all-time among catchers), 2,127 hits, .308 batting average.
On Sept. 21, 2001, he hit a memorable two-run homer in the eighth inning to beat the Braves 3-2 in the first game at Shea Stadium after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 (he points to the fans afterward, left).