But then I thought about it some more…and realized that the Mike Piazza trade was one of the most important in franchise history. And those who saw him play every day, like Nationals manager Dusty Baker, believe he is underrated as an all-around player. There was even anecdotal evidence from people inside the sport, asserting knowledge of Piazza’s PED use. Piazza’s two-run homer in the eighth inning at Shea Stadium lifted the Mets to a 3-2 victory over the Braves in the first sporting event played in NY after the terrorist attacks. During a visit to the Hall of Fame for an orientation tour in the spring, Piazza acknowledged he had “a unique ability to hit”.
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It wasn’t just his sweet swing, phantom-like defense or physics-defying hustle; for Harper it was also Griffey’s demeanor that set him apart. There’s a amusing taste in my mouth this morning.
In a distinct and very emotional way, the induction ceremony Sunday was Father’s Day.
Griffey now belongs to the baseball immortals.
Going into the 2000 season, his first for the Cincinnati Reds, Griffey. “If you look at the greatest center fielders to ever play this game, we’ve probably got a shelf life of 12 years because we run into walls and we just have a different mentality than anybody else on the field”. I think those three (Trey, daughter Taryn and son Tevin) are the only ones that can do that to me. “And that’s your first team”. “One of the coolest things that’s ever happened in baseball”. His career is also a classic example of the old adage: “It’s not always what you know, it’s who you know”. Initially a first baseman, Piazza switched to catcher in the minor leagues at Lasorda’s suggestion to improve his chances of working his way up the minor league ladder.
Griffey, the dynamic and seemingly always youthful star, was the No. 1 overall selection by the Seattle Mariners in the 1987 Major League Baseball draft.
And then it all clicked nearly suddenly for Piazza, hitting 52 home runs in the minors before getting called up by the Dodgers in September 1992. Senior hit just four total home runs in a Mariners uniform, a fraction compared to the 417 his son hit for Seattle.
When the Mets acquired Mike Piazza from the Florida Marlins in 1998, they knew they were getting a difference-maker. I didn’t even like my teammates who had boys.
He said he hopes he’s remembered for how hard he played – both as a Silver Slugger at the plate and a 10-time, wall-crashing Gold Glove center fielder. His most famous home run took place at the first major sporting event in New York City after the 9/11 terrorist attack. A power-hitting catcher who would be a stalwart in the middle of their lineup for the rest of the season.
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 was a baseball culture unto himself.
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Listening to fellow inductee Mike Piazza laud the Griffey family in his speech, and then watching a video highlight of his own career, had already put him in a vulnerable state, Griffey admitted. It wasn’t Showalter’s kind of league anymore and baseball was better for it.
