Let’s Rewatch Griffey Going Legend At The Derby The Last Time It Was At Coors Field
Griffey is a legend. And here at Korked Bats, he’s beloved by all of us. It’s why we dedicate an entire day to him on social media: #GriffeyMonday. So on the day of the Home Run Derby, and more so, on the day of the Home Run Derby returning to the thin-aired Coors Field, we’ve got to revist the day Griffey went legend. Turning straight boo’s in Coors to nothing but the sound of jaws hitting the floor.
Here’s the story in a nutshell:
In a matter of hours on Monday, July 6, 1998, Griffey went from Colorado’s No. 1 villain to the reestablished No. 1 star of our national pastime.
Considered baseball’s best and most popular player leading into the highly-anticipated Home Run Derby at power-freakish Coors Field – four years before engineer Tony Colwell invented the humidor – Griffey had stated a month prior to the contest he would not participate.
Wait, what?
Never mind that other sluggers like Juan Gonzalez, Sammy Sosa and Greg Vaughn used various excuses to not participate, or that Griffey cited fatigue from the arduous travel teams from Seattle must endure. A Home Run Derby at Coors Field was simply a too-hyped event for the game’s best player to not participate.
During the American League batting practice session early Monday – a few hours before the start of the Home Run Derby – Griffey was roundly booed by the Coors Field fans. Those boos, and a talk from Hall of Famer Frank Robinson who advised Griffey to give the fans what they want, changed Griffey’s mind.
And being the great player that he was, Griffey not only participated, he won the darn thing, hitting a combined 16 homers in the first two rounds, then beating Jim Thome, 3 home runs to 2 in the finals.
via 9News
Ken Griffey Jr. is the man. He was the greatest in his sport and still showed up to give the fans what they wanted, even when he probably didn’t want to. If you don’t like Griffey, you don’t like baseball, and you don’t like America.
If you wanna watch the full thing, you can here:
