Just a brief outline of his Major League Career: 19 Major League Seasons, .290 Career Avg, 2558 Hits, 593 Hrs, and .553 Career OBP. His swing is one of the prettiest I've ever seen: its fluid, quick, and majestic. As he rotates his powerful hips, his hands fly through the zone, and the ball soars off of his bat. Up until 2000, he was regarded as the top defensive centerfielder, with cat-like reflexes and a cannon for an arm. He hustled on every play, and always wore a big smile on his face. Just one of two active players to be named to the All Century Team at the 1999 All Star Game at Fenway (Rocket was the other), Griffey was at the top of his sport, and seemed destined to become the greatest player ever. 

After an ugly dispute with Seattle Mariners managment, Junior signed with his hometown team, the Cincinnati Reds. At the time it seemed like a great move: a player in his prime moving into one of the top hitter's parks in the game. However, as everyone knows, injuries derailed his career. Griffey missed substantial time in 2002-06 as the result of a slew of unfortunate accidents and physical let-downs. As players like Albert Pujols, Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez rose into national prominence, Junior's star began to fade. 2007 was a comeback year for the "The Kid," where he played in 144 games, hit 30 HRs and had 93RBIs, a respectable line for a 38 year old corner outfielder. 

Perhaps Griffey's most incredible achievement is the fact that he has stayed away from all of the steroid controversy. After the "Revival" Season of 1998, Griffey could have gone down the same road as Bonds, looking to boost his already large homerun totals in order to compete for the national spotlight. Or, after one of his many injuries, Junior could have asked his team's trainer for HGH or Anabolic Steroids in order to help speed his recovery and give him the power that he had in the mid 90's. But he stayed away from it all. Maybe it was due to his character, or just that he understood that the PEDs would hurt his body more than it would help. Regardless, Griffey stayed clean, and recovered from everything through hard work and patience. 

Remember, Griffey was supposed to be the one who broke Aaron's 755. Griffey was supposed to be the one who was on all the covers of the magazines, and on all the talk shows. Griffey was supposed to be the one who was celebrated throughout all 30 Stadiums, recognized as the greatest player many of us have ever seen with our own two eyes. But a slew of injuries took that away from him. 

Just because he's lost the past few years, doesn't mean that he should lose his legacy.

In my eyes, Ken Griffey Jr. is the greatest player of our era. And as he was ten years ago, everyone can call him, "The Natural."