Wednesday, November 03, 1999
Reds a long shot to nab Junior
Deal would mean giving up too many valuable players
BY CHRIS HAFT
The Cincinnati Enquirer
In theory, the Reds loom as one of the few teams that would seem to have a decent chance of obtaining Ken Griffey Jr.
In reality, they're a long shot.
Griffey, perhaps the most luminous of all of baseball's stars, rocked the sport's world Tuesday by requesting a trade from the Seattle Mariners, his employers for his entire professional career, to be closer to his family in Orlando, Fla.
As a “10-and-5” player who has spent at least 10 years in the major leagues, including the last five with his current club, Griffey, who reached the majors with Seattle in 1989, has the right to refuse any trade.
Whether he'd approve a trade to the Reds, his hometown team, is open for speculation — and doubt. Any conceivable package of players Seattle might accept from the Reds would leave Cincinnati with a team that Griffey would not want to join.
The Reds lack enough depth at the major- and minor-league levels to assemble a group of players that would make a Griffey deal acceptable to all parties. That is, unless Griffey would appreciate a team without at least three of the following players: Sean Casey, Pokey Reese, Barry Larkin, Danny Graves or Scott Williamson.
Economics pose another stumbling block. Since Griffey becomes eligible for free agency after next season, it's anticipated that whoever obtains him must have the wherewithal to sign him long term. The 10-time All-Star center fielder received an eight-year, $135 million offer from the Mariners that would have made him baseball's highest-paid player.
Even if Griffey were to accept less than that from his new team — he twice spurned free agency to stay with the Mariners, proving that breaking the bank isn't his top priority — bringing him to Cincinnati would require a significant financial commitment from the Reds' new ownership.
Still, expect the Reds to explore the parameters of a Griffey deal as thoroughly as possible. Management realizes that this opportunity might not come again.
“I consider Ken Griffey Jr. the best all-around position player in all of major-league baseball,” Reds General Manager Jim Bowden said. “Obviously, if there was any way possible the Reds could find a way to acquire him via trade and he would fit within our budget, we would have serious interest.”
The Atlanta Braves already are regarded as the clear leaders in the Griffey race. Geography certainly helps the Braves. Atlanta's multifaceted center fielder Andruw Jones, 22, would serve as an adequate replacement for Griffey. The Braves could sweeten the deal with one of their prominent starting pitchers outside of Greg Maddux — Tom Glavine, John Smoltz or Kevin Millwood.
And don't count out the New York Yankees, winners of the last two World Series. In the only other recent situation that comes close to paralleling this one, the Yankees had the resources to engineer a spring-training swap with Toronto for five-time Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens. They still have plenty of talent left for another big trade.
Nevertheless, the Reds and their fans have every right to feel tantalized.
Obviously, Griffey's father is the Reds' bench coach and a prospective manager. Though it has been emphasized that Ken Griffey Sr.'s fate isn't tied to his son's, Senior's presence here can't hurt.
Griffey is also known to be friends with Larkin, the Reds' 10-time All-Star shortstop and acknowledged leader.
Also, Seattle appears doomed to receive less than full value for Griffey. He's a sure Hall of Famer who has a fair chance of breaking Henry Aaron's career home-run record of 755, is a .299 lifetime hitter with 398 home runs in 11 seasons and is a nine-time Gold Glove winner. And he happens to be 18 days away from turning 30.
How can the Mariners get enough in return? They're vulnerable. And few general managers can prey upon that weakness as effectively as Bowden, whose acquisition of slugging left fielder Dante Bichette Saturday was the most recent in a series of shrewd deals.
Aware of their plight, the Mariners have sought to prevent Griffey from divulging a list of teams to which he'd approve a trade. If such a list exists, knowledge of those teams and what they might offer would cripple Seattle's bargaining power.
Thus, Mariners officials and Griffey's Cincinnati-based agent, Brian Goldberg, had little to say outside of the statement that the team and Griffey issued jointly.
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