Griffey Close To Reuniting With Seattle

With free agency and players going for more and more money nowadays, it’s harder for teams to reunite with the players that made a name for themselves in their city, their ballpark, their team. Fans would love to have that player back, if only for one more year or glory and remembering what he brought to the team. So Mariners fans have to be ecstatic that the Mariners and Griffey are close to a one-year deal.

The first affect Griffey would have is on ticket sales. For a team with as much talent as Seattle had last year, they were one of the bigger busts of the season—next to the Detroit Tigers. So bringing in more fans is a priority and Griffey can do that. But, obviously a team isn’t going to sign a player just for ticket sales.

Griffey has been battling injuries throughout his entire career and 2008 was no different. He needed surgery on his left knee this offseason from an injury that occurred in April. Because the injury was to his knee, his numbers dropped to 18 home runs and 71 RBIs—down from 30 home runs and 93 RBIs from the year before. With the surgery and a positive rehab, Griffey is looking to return to his ’07 form. The Mariners are praying for him to return to form too. They really can’t have another player underperforming (see: Miguel Batista’s 6.26 ERA or Carlos Silva’s 6.46—both players are making over $8 million a year).

So while the move may seem like a reunion, it is also a move that could help the Mariners. If Griffey returns to his ’07 form, he would help a team in need of power—the Mariners finished 26th out of 30 teams last season with only 124 home runs.

So this looks like a good deal for both sides. Griffey gets to go back to where he started and play loose and relaxed. The Mariners get a man who can still hit and bring fans to the stadium. It seems like a match made in heaven.