What would've been...Ken Griffey Jr.

[William]

I was watching MLB Network and they were naming the best players at each position in the 1990's, and to no surprise Ken Griffey Jr. was the center fielder they selected. So this got me thinking, what would his career statistics been, had he stayed healthy? So his worst years with injuries were 2001-2004 in which he never reached more than 364 AB's, compared to his career AB's per season of 513. I determined his H/AB, R/AB, 2B/AB, HR/AB, and his RBI/AB for those select years. And multiplied those numbers by 513. And this would've been his stats for the years 2001-2004:

Triple Slash H R 2B HR RBI
2001: .286/.365/.533 146 80 28 31 91
2002: .264/.358/.426 135 44 20 20 59
2003: .247/.370/.566 126 105 37 40 80
2004: .253/.351/.513 129 84 30 34 102

As I looked at his stats I noticed that in 1995, he suffered an injury, there was also a strike that year, but I don't think that would've affected his stats because they still managed to play 144 games and he could've achieved these stats I believe. Griffey's 1995 statistics were averages of the years 1993-1994 & 1996-2000. Which was when he was playing his best ball. In "The Kid's" 1994 season he hit 40 home runs and then hit 49 in 1996 and only 17 in 1995 so without injuries these stats would've been achievable:

1995: .296/.351/.513 128 114 29 47 126

With these improved seasons and a much improved career, I decided to see where he would rank in the all time records:

Career Hits
6th All Time - 3,483

Career Doubles
T-5th All Time (Biggio) - 668

Career Home Runs
3rd All TIme - 722

Career Runs Batted In
2nd All Time (3 behind Hank Aaron) - 2,294

This might not have been the most efficient way to do this but I think its a fairly reasonable way to determine his career numbers, had he stayed healthy. I think these numbers were achievable with all the talent he had. It would've been remarkable getting to see him do all of this and would've, in my opinion, made him the best player of all time. But that will never be known, just how good Ken Griffey Jr. could've been.

[webbbj]

As far as HRs are concerned I think you may have been conservative on that #. From a pure math calculation those #s I assume come out right. But there is also the timing aspect and needing to get his "groove" back at the plate each time he had to miss so many games.

I came up w/ my own predictions season by season and came up with 774 HRs

[drowg14]

I did a similar exercise a couple of years ago. I can't remember what I came up with, but it was around the OP's HR total I think. But the fact that he got hurt so much proves to me he wasn't on 'roids. This makes me respect his numbers much more. Putting up those numbers, with a bunch of injury shortened seasons, without help. He would have been a top 5 player all time in my mind had he stayed healthy.

[El Bacalao]

Health was a big issue for Griffey as a Red for sure. I like to think about what the Reds would have done with a healthy Griffey along with the Front Office and Ownership the Reds currently have. Timing is everything.

[chuck6660]

What If's are great excersizes for the mind, and I have often did the same; however injuries are part of the game. Imagine if Ted Williams didn't have to serve in two wars or if Mickey Mantle hadn't gone on drinking binges... Griffeys stats and career speak for themselves, 630 HR, 1836 RBIs, 1662 runs, 2781 Hits and a career .284 B.A., not to mention his fielding and ambassadorship for the game.
He's a first ballot HoF'er

[wastedtime]

I did a similar exercise a couple of years ago. I can't remember what I came up with, but it was around the OP's HR total I think. But the fact that he got hurt so much proves to me he wasn't on 'roids. This makes me respect his numbers much more. Putting up those numbers, with a bunch of injury shortened seasons, without help. He would have been a top 5 player all time in my mind had he stayed healthy.
From what I've heard, Jr never did workout much. If that's the case, then the only thing 'roids would have done for him is made him fat.

No, he wasn't on steroids.

[SweetLou1990]

From what I've heard, Jr never did workout much. If that's the case, then the only thing 'roids would have done for him is made him fat.

No, he wasn't on steroids.

With a decade plus of steroid hindsight, maybe Jr didn't work out - as much as the steroid guys.

I have no regrets about the Reds getting him, they took a shot, but he wasn't the same player and he never had much of a team...... sigh

630 HR makes him one of the greatet ever!

[webbbj]

They gave up no one of that great value for an all century player.

On February 12, 2000, Griffey was traded to the Reds for pitcher Brett Tomko, outfielder Mike Cameron, and minor leaguers Antonio Perez and Jake Meyer.

Griffey signed a 9 year $112.5 million dollar contract with the Reds after the trade was completed, with a club option for a tenth.[18]

And that contract was highway robbery for the Reds even in 2000. He could of easily demanded Arod money or close to it.

[UrbanMeyer]

To think 'what could've been' kind of takes away from all that he accomplished (for me, anyways). 630 home runs and nearly 2800 hits arguably puts him in the top ten for position players all time. And that's not even mentioning his unprecedented defensive contributions as well.

[Cicero2.0]

I was lucky enough to watch him hit a home run at GABP. They lost the game and Majewski was booed off the field but it is one of my favorite baseball memories. I saw him again when the Reds came to Pittsburgh but he went 0-4.

[BlackPete Ibold]

When it happened, I really felt that Griff coming home to Cincy would be the 2nd half of Frank Robby's career that the Reds never got.

Instead, the Reds traded the "young" 30 Robby and got the "old" 30 Griffey.


But as was mentioned before, it was still a great trade for the Reds in terms of talent given up. And I agree, the contract that was always called such an albatross was nothing of the sort if the team didn't have such a penny pinching fossil of an owner.


It is also crazy that in a list of all time great Reds you can get a HoF player at basically every position (except the outfield), and eventually Griffey will be a 1st ballot guy too, but Griffey would never be on an all time Reds team. I'd take Eric Davis or Vada Pinson over Griffey, and Griffey has to go Cooperstown as the first (primarily) Mariner ever enshrined.

Just no sure things ever in sports, as much as I (and most everybody else) thought Griff was the surest thing for the Reds this side of death and taxes.

[bigfunguy]

God I remember how happy I was....what might have been indeed...

[alwaysawarrior]

His trade day was an exciting day for Reds fans, and Griffey did at least bring some exciting moments along the way. My brother and I went to one of the games where he was sitting on 499 homeruns. Whoever we were playing that night intentionally walked him I believe twice, and the place went nuts when they did it in the later innings. Crap was thrown all over the field. Neither of us were very old and so that was interesting for us to watch.