Junior back to enjoying sweet success

Just when it looked like Ken Griffey Jr. was for the most part washed up, he's again an elite-level player.

Originally Published: August 31, 2005
By Jerry Crasnick | ESPN.com
Ken Griffey Jr. is picking off historical signposts and passing Hall of Famers so routinely these days, he has entered what is typically described as "rarefied air.''

Unpolluted, too.

Griffey hit his 534th career homer Sunday to move into a tie for 13th place on the career list with Jimmie Foxx, who grew strong as a youth by milking cows and doing chores on the family farm. Next up: Mickey Mantle, who hit 536 homers with arm strength forged through years of swinging a sledgehammer in the mines of Oklahoma.


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Jerry Crasnick | email

ESPN.com MLB Sr. Writer
  • ESPN.com senior writer
  • Author of "License to Deal"
  • Former Denver Post national baseball writer

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