Posts tagged KenGriffeyJr at FanHouse

I have to admit, when I first saw Alexei Ramirez in a White Sox uniform, I thought the Sox had broken new ground by scouting for baseball talent in Ethiopia. The kid was so skinny that even Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen thought he was bulimic. Well, as it turns out, the Cuban import has been a fantastic addition to the White Sox this season.

I've already begun my Carlos Quentin for MVP campaign here on FanHouse, so I don't want to litter the place with more "The White Sox rule!" posts, but I have to say, Alexei deserves some recognition for A.L. Rookie of the Year. I wouldn't have said this a few weeks ago, but now with Evan Longoria on the disabled list, there's a chance Alexei could change a few minds.

Not that he cares. He's just honored to be playing here.

"It really feels like a dream right now that I don't want to wake up from," said Ramirez, who played for several national teams and for Pinar Del Rio in his native Cuba before this season.

"In certain lineups, [Griffey] has been hitting behind me, and it's an absolute honor to be in the same lineup."

Ozzie Guillen doesn't end. He just goes on and on, my friend. Some people started interviewing him not knowing who he was, and they'll continue interviewing forever just because Ozzie Guillen doesn't end. He just goes on and on, my friend. Some people started interviewing him not knowing who he was, and they'll continue interviewing forever just becau-

Supporting the White Sox is a lot like being Luke Wilson's character from Idiocracy. It's a righteous cause, but more often than not you're left wandering around thinking they're all dumb****s.

Tonight's Dugged-out is after the jump.

It's always fun when a visiting athlete decides to point out the flaws in another town. Take Ichiro, for example, who angered the entire town of Cleveland with his remarks re: how it rocks. Ken Griffey, Jr., apparently feels pretty similarly to New York. Or at least Yankee Stadium. Which is why the New York Post is calling him "Grumpy Griffey."

"My favorite Yankee Stadium memory?" the Reds slugger said last night. "It's leaving Yankee Stadium."

Griffey is no fan of history, and no fan of the Yankees since Billy Martin, who has been dead for 17 years, yelled at a young Griffey while his dad, Ken Sr., was a member of the Bombers.

Once, Junior said he would never play for the Yankees for that reason alone.

"The Reds haven't been here in 30 years," he said before the Reds' 4-2 victory last night. "For us it's a road trip we have to make, not something to look forward to."

Okay, it's only a spectacular quote because the idea of millions of Yankee fans getting worked up at Griff is funny; it has nothing to do with the basic nature of said fans. At all. I swear.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post ran this blind item about the Reds in his Sunday column:

New Reds GM Walt Jocketty has told counterparts he wants to clean house, notably of free-agent-to-be outfielders Ken Griffey Jr. and Adam Dunn, plus Ryan Freel and - in the right deal -starter Bronson Arroyo.

Not surprisingly, Jocketty did his best to shoot down that rumor today:

"I don't where that came from," he said. "First of all, I'd would have never said clean house. It's not necessary. There's a strong possibility we'll have everyone till the end of the year. Dusty (Baker) and I are haven't been here that long. We're still evaluating the team. We haven't had the luxury of seeing everyone over a long period of time."

Sherman didn't cite any sources nor did he elaborate, so it's hard to judge the veracity of his claim. But even if Jocketty is telling the truth, his rationale doesn't hold water. We're supposed to believe that he's still "evaluating" Griffey, Dunn, Freel and Arroyo? Those four have a combined 40 years of experience, another few months of watching them up close won't tell Jocketty anything he doesn't already know, especially considering how much he's seen them play over the years from his days presiding over the division-rival Cardinals. He's walking a fine line between playing coy and being ridiculous.

Previously on FanHouse:
Junior Has His Eyes on Tampa

So far this season there have been quite a few big name players whose names have been bandied about in trade rumors. There are the Ken Griffey Jr. rumors, the C.C. Sabathia rumors, and hell, A.J. Burnett is basically trying to start his own "Burnett to Chicago" rumors.

One surprising name that was brought up today in the New York Post (and if it's in the Post, it has to be true) for the first time is that of Milwaukee Brewers first baseman Prince Fielder.

Want a surprise name that could come in the market, maybe before July 31, but almost definitely in the offseason when the Mets and Yanks could be hunting first basemen: Milwaukee's Prince Fielder. Milwaukee is blessed with a lot of offensive-centric players who could switch to first (Ryan Braun in the majors, Matt LaPorta or Mat Gamel nearly ready at Double-A). Mainly, Fielder is a Scott Boras client who almost certainly will not sign a long-term contract and the Brewers could decide his greatest value is in dealing him sooner than later while his value is highest and cost to them lowest. The Dodgers, Twins and Royals also could have interest.

Now when first reading this, and considering the source, it's pretty easy to dismiss this as just the daydreams of a columnist. Then you read the quote from Brewers general manager Doug Melvin, and you start to wonder.

Now that Ken Griffey Jr. has surpassed the 600 home run milestone, and the Reds are sitting in last place in the NL Central (though they're only three games under), if there's ever going to be a time when Cincinnati would trade Junior, this is it. Griffey has already gone on record as saying that he expects to be traded this season, but since he has a no-trade clause, he's going to have a say in where he's going.

One of those places Junior would consider? According to SI's Jon Heyman, Tampa is looking nice this time of year.

Now Griffey, a longtime resident of the Orlando, Fla., area, is telling friends he's monitoring the surprising Tampa Bay Rays as a possible destination for him, should the Reds decide to deal him.

Griffey, 39, has a no-trade clause but has told intimates that if the Rays stay in the race, he'd consider waiving his veto power to go home. Or close to home, anyway. Tampa is much nearer his Orlando-area residence than any other big-league city. Griffey's tony Isleworth community is about an hour from St. Petersburg, where the Rays play.

Tampa would be a good place for Junior since they are in the race, and they are located near Junior's home in Orlando, so he can be close with his family. It would also work for the Reds because they need pitching, and the Rays are an organization with a lot of young pitching they can move in such a deal.

As for the Rays, while I could understand their motive in bringing Junior to Florida, I'm not sure he'll be enough to help the team overcome Boston in the AL East this season. By making this deal the Rays may just end up giving up the young arms that can help them overcome Boston in the future for a three month rental at DH that's not going to be enough.

Tonight, Ken Griffey Jr. hit his 600th career home run. That's a great accomplishment, but it's not as great as it could be. That got me thinking a little bit. What would be happening right now if Junior stayed healthy?

September 19th, 2000- Nursing his first hamstring injury, Griffey hits a pinch-hit home run in the ninth inning off of Livan Hernandez. On his way out of the park that night, he spies a penny lying face down in the parking lot. He thinks, "See a penny, pick it up, and all day you'll have good luck." As he bends down, Pokey Reese kicks it out of his way and screams, "DAMMIT, JUNIOR! Face down pennies are bad luck! Are you an idiot?" Pokey's shove causes Griffey to further injure his already ailing hamstring As a result, Griffey doesn't try to play on it to end the year and fully rehabs it over the winter.

2001- Griffey cruises into 2001 refreshed and at full-strength. He smashes 11 homers in April and never looks back. He can't keep pace with Barry Bonds, but he does improve in his second year in the NL and he hits 44 home runs and his career total sits at 482. As for the Reds? They win 71 games.

On Deck is FanHouse's look at the day's most intriguing baseball matchups

Los Angeles Angels (39-25) vs. Tampa Bay Rays (37-26) - 10:05PM Est.

It's pretty much a consensus that Tropicana Field is far and away the worst "baseball stadium" in the big leagues, but don't tell that to the Rays. They love the place, as they've gone 24-10 there this season. The road, on the other hand, has not been so kind.

Outside of the Trop, the Rays are only 13-16 and they find themselves in the midst of a nine-game road trip that has not been kind. After being swept by the Red Sox to start it off, they won two in Texas before losing yesterday. To make matters worse, the frustration is starting to show. The Rays are just an angry team.

After getting into a brawl with the Red Sox on Thursday, they were fighting themselves yesterday as Matt Garza and Dioner Navarro had a disagreement about, hell, I don't know, the best Doritos flavor?

On Deck is FanHouse's look at the day's most intriguing baseball matchups.

New York Mets (30-31) at San Diego Padres (27-37) - 4:05 PM ET

The Padres did something over the last four games that nobody in the majors had ever done before. They won four straight games by the score of 2-1. Even for a team that can't score, that's an amazing stat considering the Padres have lost more of these games than they've won, and more amazing that not one of those games went 25 innings. Scott Hairston has been a big help over the last couple ... making a huge diving catch with the bases loaded on Friday, and hitting the walk-off home run on Saturday.

The Mets meanwhile have to live with the sting of losing three straight to a team that was 13 games under .500 coming into this series. How long before the turk starts knocking on Willie Randolph's door again?

On Deck is FanHouse's look at the day's most intriguing baseball matchups

Philadelphia Phillies (35-26) vs. Cincinnati Reds (29-31) - 1:05PM Est.

You can't blame the Reds for trying to strike while the iron is hot, especially given the way that Jay Bruce has lit the world up since making his debut with the big league ball club last week, and they'll hope that success carries over to the pitcher's mound as well. Today the Reds will be handing the ball to Homer Bailey as they just called him up from Louisville and they're hoping he'll do a lot better in his second tour of duty.

Bailey was supposed to be Edinson Volquez when the Reds brought him up last season, and though he showed some signs of why the Reds are so high on him, his first season in the Majors wasn't that great.

He'll look to get his career started this afternoon against one of the most potent offenses in all of baseball.

Oh, and there's the whole Ken Griffey Jr. looking for homer # 600 as well.