MLB Hall of Fame: 5 best moments of Ken Griffey Jr.’s career
By Brad Weiss
1. Griffey scores on ‘The Double’
During the 1995 baseball season, the Seattle Mariners were struggling to stay alive in the playoff race. The team then went on an improbable run, getting Griffey back from injury, and earning a spot in the American League Division Series against the New York Yankees.
After dropping the first two games of the series, the Mariners battled back, tying the series at 2-2 and forcing a decisive Game Five. In the bottom of the 11th, with Griffey on first, Seattle’s star designated hitter Edgar Martinez blasted a double down the left field line off Yankees pitcher Jack McDowell. Griffey came running around third, scoring the game-winning run, and sending the Mariners to the American League Championship Series.
The play seemed to save Seattle baseball, as the team was rumored to be leaving. The Mariners would go on to win the American League West again in 1997 and 2001, but the 1995 team is still beloved in the minds of Mariners fans.
The win also led to the creation of Safeco Field, and Griffey actually had a Super Nintendo video game called Ken Griffey Jr.’s Winning Run created in his honor.
The Mariners would go on to lose in the ALCS to the Cleveland Indians, but the play had an everlasting domino effect on the Mariners and Griffey. There was no bigger moment for Griffey, and no bigger win for the Mariners franchise.
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