Baseball Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. (R) chats with an official before Game 2 of Major League Baseball’s Seoul Series at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on March 21, 2024. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Mar. 22 (Korea Bizwire) — Few players in baseball understand the pressure of living up to a famous father’s name quite like Ken Griffey Jr. So when this Hall of Famer gives advice, you’d better listen.
Griffey, now 54, was famously teammates with his father, Griffey Sr., in 1990 and 1991 for the Seattle Mariners. On Sept. 14, 1990, they became the first father-son duo in Major League Baseball (MLB) history to hit back-to-back home runs.
“Junior” went on to carve out a far more illustrious career than his old man, who was a three-time All-Star for the Cincinnati Reds. Griffey Jr., a Seattle icon, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2016 after earning 10 Gold Gloves, the 1997 American League MVP award, seven Silver Slugger awards and 13 All-Star Game selections. The sweet-swinging slugger ranks seventh all time with 630 career home runs.
South Korean baseball fans have seen the rise of a second-generation star in outfielder Lee Jung-hoo, who signed with the San Francisco Giants in December after a successful seven-year run in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO). Lee’s father is longtime KBO star Lee Jong-beom. They remain the only father-son duo in KBO history to have each won an MVP award.
Baseball Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. poses with his camera while working as a special photographer during Game 1 of Major League Baseball’s Seoul Series at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on March 20, 2024, in this photo captured from MLB’s official X page. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
Though Lee Jung-hoo is one of the most accomplished and popular South Korean baseball player in recent years, some may even say he still hasn’t completely moved out of his legendary father’s shadow.
Griffey Jr.’s advice to Lee, or any other player in a similar situation, was simple.
“Just be yourself. Just be you,” Griffey told reporters at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on Thursday, before the second game of MLB’s Seoul Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres.
“When you look in the mirror, that’s who are. You can’t lie to the mirror,” Griffey added. “You don’t want to be able to carry that lie throughout the course of a day. You just want to go out there, and when people ask you a question, answer it as honestly as you can and just be truthful.”
Griffey was in the South Korean capital this week to cover the Seoul Series as a special photographer. The two games of the series were the first MLB regular season games to be played in South Korea. The former player known as “the Kid” shot the first game Wednesday from the third base side and moved across the diamond to take pictures from the first base side the next day.
Griffey, who worked Game 5 of last year’s World Series, said he took up photography in 2009, one year before retiring from baseball. It gave him a chance to see his children play sports.
Baseball Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. (C) stands between Little League baseball players Kim Jae-ah (L) and Baek Ji-soo for the ceremonial first pitch before Game 2 of Major League Baseball’s Seoul Series at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on March 21, 2024. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
“Nobody messes with the photographer,” Griffey said with a smile. “I was able to get on the field and go shoot. Plus, having a lot of guys who do it professionally has helped me out throughout.”
Griffey, whose son Trey played in the National Football League and daughter Taryn played college basketball, said he wanted to raise his children in a way that they would be respectful to others and they wouldn’t act entitled just because they have a famous family name.
“I want my kids to be the best kids that they can be on and off the field,” Griffey said. “One of my best teammates said I wish we had more kids like yours in this locker room, which meant more to me than what I’ve ever done on the field.”
Griffey also said Lee should feel confident in his abilities because, “Anytime you make it to the big leagues, that means you can play.”
Baseball Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. (R) bumps fists with Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts after Betts hit a home run against the San Diego Padres during Game 2 of Major League Baseball’s Seoul Series at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on March 21, 2024, in this photo captured from the Dodgers’ official X page. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
“The hardest part about playing professional sports is getting drafted or signing a pro contract,” he said. “You can’t show up off the street and go, ‘Hey, I’m batting third, coach.’ So obviously, he has a special skill set that he can go out there and help a ball club win.”
Griffey said he had done some sightseeing in South Korea, a country he was visiting for the first time, when he was not busy capturing action on the diamond.
“It’s been fun. The biggest thing is Korea loves baseball and it’s fun to watch,” he said. “It’s fun to look around and see everybody enjoying themselves. I know we’re here for a short amount of time, but you can really feel that.”
(Yonhap)
