Ken Griffey Jr.

Nothing like the popularity contest known as All Star Game voting to drive an attentive fan crazy.

The All Star game is meant to be for the fans, so logically, the fans should get the right to choose who they get to see in the game. As a result, many times a "fan favorite" makes the game despite lackluster performance, thanks to the fan vote.

While the differences between good and bad have become more clear as the years have gone on, there are still plenty of whoppers on the ballot.

As a lifelong skeptic, I am the first person to downplay a small sample size of excellent statistics.

When Mike Sweeney tore through spring training and earned a roster spot with the Mariners this year, part of me said 'good, I'll take an able bat on the bench,' while another part of me said 'why are we wasting a roster spot on a non-fielding designated hitter and pinch hitter when we already have Griffey filling that role?' I was skeptical, but willing to give Sweeney a few weeks to prove me wrong.

The Seattle Mariners have entered a world they may eventually wish they hadn't. In the wake of the Ken Griffey Jr. "sleeping in the clubhouse during a game article," the Mariner players have decided to boycott the newspaper in which the article appeared.

The Mariners are now refusing to talk to or grant any interviews to the Tacoma News Tribune.

Why, exactly? Because apparently, they feel the reporter who wrote the piece, veteran Mariners beat writer Larry LaRue, was irresponsible for publishing it.

The Mariners' hitting is, to be blunt, very bad.

As an Indians fan, I think of my team's hitting, and think to myself, it could be worse. We could have the Mariners' hitting.

They are last in runs, home runs, and slugging percentage, and nearly last in batting average, hits, and other categories.

So the question is, how do we fix this?

Clearly, the Mariners are still in the hunt in a tight AL West, so they aren't out of it, and can afford to make some changes.

Is there a Dr. Jack Kevorkian for baseball?

Someone you go to if you want a career euthanized?

I have a candidate for Doctor Death, but bear with me first.

I’m getting flashbacks, and they aren’t good.

I’ve been remembering Willie Mays lately, but not in the way you’d think I would remember him.

We see it in every sport, a once great player hangs on too long, refusing to accept that his time has passed. It's hard to watch our heroes become mere mortals right before our eyes, and many fans seem to take it personally.

It's no great mystery why it happens. All these athletes know is the game they have dedicated their lives to, given their blood, sweat, and tears for.

Ken Griffey, Jr.'s baseball career is about to come to an end, probably within the next month, according to this column in the Tacoma News Tribune . According to the column, Griffey, 40, who is hitting .208, with no home runs and five RBI in 23 games this season as the left-handed-hitting DH for the Seattle Mariners, will be asked to retire or will be released after he apparently could not be used as a pinch hitter in a game last week because he was sleeping in the clubhouse.

After watching the Mariners blow game after game, it came as no surprise their hitting was amiss again Sunday.  Doug Fister’s great showing was all for nothing, and Ichiro’s stolen home run forgotten.

Right from the start let me say that I love Ken Griffey Jr. Without a doubt, he is one of the all-time greats to play the game (so far).

I had to throw the qualifier in because he seemingly has become one of those greats that tarnish their own legacy by playing years past their expiration date. If he was a carton of milk and you drank him, you'd get food poisoning and maybe die.

He currently ranks fifth on the career home run list, with 630. He is 15th all-time in RBI with 1,833, and his roots are firmly planted in the soil of the Baseball Hall of Fame.

It is always hard to watch a player that was once at the top of his game not know when to call it a career.

I understand, and fully respect, the fact that these guys love the game of baseball and want to play as long as they can.