It's no secret, I'm a hometown homer fan (hence the name of this blog). So it's understood that I'm extremely pleased to welcome Jr. back to Seattle. But I'm not happy he's back for nostalgic reasons or to see him retire as a Mariner. I think he legitimately can still play this game and he's a significant upgrade at the DH position for the M's.Let's compare Jr. in 2007 to Jose Vidro in 2007 (the M's DH for the majority of the year). Here's the stat lines:
Griffey (with a torn meniscus):
.249 average, 30 doubles, 18 HR's, 71 RBI, 78 walks, .353 OBP
Vidro (with a sore vag):
.234 average, 11 doubles, 7 HR's, 45 RBI, 18 walks, .274 OBP
On top of Vidro's less-than-impressive stat line is the fact he was paid $8.5 million last season. What a joke!
Now Griffey's contract with the M's carries a base salary of $2 million with incentives (based on plate appearances and attendance) that could push the deal to $5 million. To me, its a no-brainer. And with Griffey's knee at 100% and the opportunity for him to rest his body and play DH, I expect better numbers this year from Jr. Do I expect him to hit .350 with 40 HR's and 120 RBI. Ofcourse not. I think more along the lines of .280 with 25 HR's and 85 RBI.
