Ken Griffey Jr., Seattle Mariners. (Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports)
Ken Griffey Jr. is tasked with helping Major League Baseball out in a big way in his new job.
Anybody alive in the 1990s knows how transcendent of a baseball talent Ken Griffey Jr. was for the Seattle Mariners.
Blessed with the sweetest swing to ever grace the earth, Griffey was a 13-time All-Star, a 10-time Gold Glove winner and a seven-time Silver Slugger recipient in his illustrious career primarily with the Mariners and the Cincinnati Reds. Griffey was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame on the first ballot in 2016. And as of Friday, he now works for Major League Baseball.
Does Gen-Z even know who Ken Griffey Jr. is?
Griffey will be a senior advisor to commissioner Rob Manfred, tasked with baseball operations, drawing up interest in the sport from a youth standpoint and getting a more diverse player pool at all levels across the United States. While Griffey may be perfect for this role, we have to wonder how many kids Gen-Z and younger even know who he is? Keep in mind, this is Gen-Z after all.
Griffey has universal appeal during his playing career from 1989 to 2010. Whether you were a Baby Boomer, a Gen-Xer or a Millennial, everybody knew who Griffey was and how undeniably cool he was. There has not been a more marketable athlete in baseball before or since. If he is unable to reach the youth and get them excited about the game of baseball, nobody will.
While he may have a picturesque smile, Griffey has to be about the work in his new MLB role.