Ken Griffey Jr. Online - Information (Personal)

George Kenneth Griffey Jr. was born November 21, 1969, in Donora, Pennsylvania, the oldest of two boys. He shares the same birthday with Stan Musial(1920), Earl Monroe(1944), and Troy Aikman(1966).

His mother's name is Alberta, but she goes by the nickname "Birdie." His Father is Ken Griffey, Sr., who played 19 seasons with four teams in the major leagues. His parents' first date was a high school Sadie Hawkins Dance.

Junior's paternal grandfather, Buddy Griffey, was a high school teammate of Stan Musial in Donora.

At Cincinnati Moeller high school, Junior was a star tailback and wide reciever for the football team for three years before sitting out his senior season. His team won the state championship his junior year.

In January 1988, in a state of depression, Junior swallowed an entire bottle of asprin. He had to have his stomach pumped at Providence Hospital in Mount Airy, Ohio. He revealed the incident four years later, hoping his admission would help troubled teens.

Junior was the first player in the majors born after an expansion team won a World Series (the 1969 New York Mets).

Junior has used a Rawlings Trapeze glove since his father gave him that model in 1986. He uses the same glove in practice and games. He goes through four gloves in a season.

Ken uses a Loisville Slugger bat that is 34 inches long and weighs 31 ounces, making it one of the smallest in the big leagues.

Junior has a leather recliner with a built-in massager next to his locker stall. He usually takes an hour and a half to dress for a game.

His younger brother, Craig, was a defensive back at Ohio State University and now plays in the Mariners' farm system.

Ken and his wife, Melissa, met at an under-21 alcohol-free club. She asked him to dance.

Ken and Melissa have two children: Trey Kenneth (born January 19, 1994) and Taryn Kennedy (born October 21, 1995). When Trey was born, Mariners' G.M. Woody Woodward sent him a player's contract dated 2012.

Ken and his family have homes in Issaquah, Washington; Cincinnati; and Orlando, Florida. His neighbors in the gated community in suburban Orlando include Tiger Woods, Penny Hardaway, Wesley Snipes and Mark O'Meara.

Ken still sleeps in the same bed he did as a high schooler in his parents' home.

The Griffey family is the proud owner of three rottweilers

Ken deposited every paycheck from his first four years in the big leagues into a passbook savings account at a Seattle bank.

Ken has endorsement deals worth a reported $5 million in 1997. He does work for Nike (since 1990), Pizza Hut (1996), Nintendo (1992), Upperdeck baseball cards (1990), General Mills/Wheaties (1996), All-Star Cafes (1995), Score Board collectibles (1990), Rawlings (1989), Gargoyles eyewear (1995)and Power Aid.

Despite being allergic to chocolate, Ken had a candy bar named after him in 1989--the Ken Griffey Jr. Chocolate Bar. More than one million bars were sold

Junior was the first baseball player to appear on a box of Honey Frosted Wheaties.

Ken is part owner of the All-Star Cafe chain with Shaquille O'Neal, Andre Agassi, Tiger Woods, Joe Montana and Wayne Gretzky, among others.

The going rate at memorabilia shows for an autographed photo of Ken is $35, an autographed ball is $60 and an autographed bat is $175.

In Winter 1996, Nintendo attached more than 15 sensors to Ken to record his body movements and swing to make its games more realistic. There are four Griffey video games on the market, two for Super Nintendo, one for Nintendo 64 and one for Nintendo Gameboy.

Ken has worn Nike spikes since his high school days when his father began wearing them with the New York Yankees. But it wasn't until 1994 that Nike began using Junior in a television ad campaign.

Ken played himself in the movie "Little Big League," filmed in Minnesota following the 1993 season. His one line: "What is Bauer doing? What is he thinking? I might steal third. Just for that, I might steal home." The scene ends with him getting picked off.

Junior has appeared on "The Arsenio Hall Show", "Fresh Prince", "The Simpsons", "Medicine Ball" and "Harry and the Hendersons".

Ken took piano lessons as a child. He worked on a song with M.C. Hammer, but lists Bobby Brown as his favorite singer.

Among Ken's other favorites: Movie--Pulp Fiction; Actor--Samuel L. Jackson; Actress--Demi Moore; Type of Music--Rap; Magazine--Sports Illustrated; Car--Ferrari F40; Colors--Black and White; Animal--Black Panther; Flower--Yellow Rose; Type of Food--Chinese; Geographic Location--Arizona; Sports to watch (other than baseball)--Football, Basketball; Sports to Play (other than Baseball)--Basketball; Hobbies--Golfing, Bowling, Playing video games; Clothes--Jeans and sweat pants.

The athlete Junior admired most as a kid was Ricky Henderson.

Ken wears a gold "24" on a gold chain around his neck.

The license plate on one of Ken's cars reads FEAR NO ONE.

He sold a Ferrari F40 to Reggie Jackson.

Ken recieved the 1994 Celebrity Recognition Award from the Make-A-Wish Foundation and the A. Bartlett Giamatti Award from the Baseball Assistance Team in recognition of his "caring for fellow citizens." He also was the 1996 Mariners' Roberto Clemente Award winner for outstanding community service.

Junior's Kids Center provides 200 tickets to every Saturday home game for underpriviledged youth. They sit in Section 126 of the Kingdome, directly behind Griffey in centerfield.

Ken has Sponsored Christmas Dinner for 350 youngsters from the Rainier Vista Boys and Girls Club every year since 1994. He makes sure every child receives a gift.

When Ken heard 11-year-old Dominique Mayo of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on "The Maury Povich Show" say Junior was his only male role model, Ken invited him to a Mariners' game in New York.

Ken authored an "hey Junior" column in a Seattle newspaper where he answered questions from kids.

Ken is a regular playing partner with Tiger Woods in the off-season. When they play golf, Junior gets spotted 12 strokes by the 1997 Masters Champion.

Ken has many nicknames such as: "Junior", "The Kid", "The Natural".

As a 16-year old outfielder, he hit three home runs--one to leftfield, one to centerfield, and one to rightfield, for the Midland Cardinals in the 1986 Connie Mack World Series.

Junior was the first player selected in the 1987 major league baseball draft. Ken Sr., was drafted out of high school in the 29th round of the 1969 draft.

Junior recieved a bonus of $160,000 from the Seattle Mariners for signing a player's contract right out of high shcool as a 17-year old. He was signed by Mariners' scout Tom Mooney.

Junior and his Bellingham teammates traveled on a 1958 school bus that did not have a bathroom. Some of their road trips were 10 hours long.

With Ken, Sr., still playing for the Cincinnati Reds, it was the first time father and son were in the major leagues at the same time.

In 1992, Ken swung at the first pitch he saw 109 times in 617 plate appearances. He became more selective with experience. In 1993 he swung at the first pitch 91 times, in 1994 he dropped to 64 and in 1995 he was at 38.

Ken’s longest consecutive-game hitting streak is 12. He’s accomplished that four times, the last time in 1993.

Ken's first major league contract in 1989 paid him $62,500 a year. That comes to $385 a game for a 162-game season.

In January 1996, Junior signed a contract extension worth $34 million over four years (1997-2000). That comes to $52,469 a game for a 162-game season.

Junior toured Japan with a group of major league stars in 1990 and '92. He turned down a one-year, $12 million offer to play there full-time.