Griffey smacks 600; Joe reels it in

I'm sure this wasn't how Ken Griffey Jr. imagined it.

In front of a whopping 16,003 fans in one of the worst ballparks (Dolphin Stadium), Junior reached the 600 HR milestone Monday night, whipping one just inside the right foul pole in the first inning.

Possibly the best part, from his perspective, is the number of family members in attendance as they traveled from nearby Orlando for the chance to see the historic number.

Griffey is the sixth player to reach 600, but there's an outside shot he could get 700 if the 38-year-old played another three seasons.

There was a time, before he came to Cincinnati, when most experts were predicting Griffey - not Barry Bonds - would be the eventual home run king. After back-to-back 50 HR seasons in Seattle, it seemed like Griffey, who hit his first home run as a 19-year-old, may not just break Hank Aaron's record, but he might reach 800.

For those of you who are long-time fantasy players, you may have taken Griffey with many a first-round picks during the 90s.

Obviously, those days are gone. The story is well-documented. Injuries ravaged his career after joining the Reds. But 600 is remarkable.

Still, what I find more remarkable is what happens to the milestone ball that's hit.

Almost like hitting the Lotto, the fan that comes up with the ball has an instant treasure on his hands. Unless he gives it back to the player, ala Damon Woo with Manny Ramirez's 500th ball.

On Monday night, the person who emerged from the scrum - or as close as you can get to a scrum in that stadium - was a Marlins fan named Joe, who was escorted out wearing a Sergio Mitre jersey.

No word on what Joe will be doing with the ball, but it sounds like Griffey may not ever see it.

And he probably doesn't care. Griffey's one of the good guys in baseball who doesn't get in trouble and by all accounts has done it the natural way.

It may be awhile before we see another like him.

And we may never see a swing this sweet.




Fantasy spin: Going forward, Griffey's value will likely keep declining. He'll hit the occasional home run but he'll continue to get more days off, especially if the Reds fall out of the race. And it's 50/50 in my book whether Griffey is dealt before the deadline, possibly to Seattle, although that is only making sense for sentimental reasons now that the Mariners are so far back. Still, any park other than Great American will not help his value. Sell high if you get the chance.