For Griffeys, Father’s Day is always special

Previously, the Hall of Fame has had some other unique connections with Father’s Day, such as when Class of 1996 Hall of Famer Jim Bunning, who passed away at the age of 85 on May 26, famously tossed a perfect game for the Phillies against the Mets on June 21, 1964 at Shea Stadium. The tall righty and future Kentucky politician was the father of seven children at the time.

And in 2009, at the inaugural Baseball Hall of Fame Classic held at Doubleday Field on June 21, Hall of Famer Bob Feller, the 90-year-old pitching legend with the Indians, excited the crowd when started and faced two batters in a special Father’s Day appearance. Rapid Robert would pass away one year later at 92.

As for Griffey Jr., it was a Father’s Day to remember when the Reds center fielder, with his dad in the stands, slugged his 500th career home run on June 20, 2004. In the 6-0 win over the Cardinals, the left-swinging Griffey led off the sixth inning by driving a 2-and-2 fastball from Matt Morris an estimated 393 feet into Busch Stadium’s right-field seats for his 19th round-tripper of the year.

“Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d ever accomplish this. All the aches and pains I’ve had this year were gone for like two minutes. It was awesome,” said Griffey, then in his 16th big league season, who missed more than 250 games from 2001 to 2003 due to injuries.

The 34-year-old Griffey, the 20th player to reach 500 homers, was also the sixth youngest at the time to reach the milestone. Jimmie Foxx was the youngest, at age 32, to hit 500 homers, while Willie Mays, Sammy Sosa, Hank Aaron and Babe Ruth were, like Griffey, all 34.

Moments after he circled the bases, Griffey walked to a box on the far end of the Reds’ dugout on the third-base side and approached his dad, Ken Griffey, mother Bertie, wife Melissa and his three children. Griffey Jr. would embrace his father, a former teammate with the Mariners in 1991 and ’92. The elder Griffey said his son told him, simply, “Happy Father’s Day. I love you."

"It's been a great Father's Day for me. I've just enjoyed every minute of it,” Griffey Sr. said. “I probably was under more pressure than he was. He's still playing and I had to sit and watch.

“It was a nice Father’s Day present, but it’s an easy way to get out of giving me something. He ain’t getting off that easy,” Griffey Sr. joked. “He used to do that for me for my birthday all the time. He'd hit one and call me, ‘Oh, happy birthday dad. I hit a home run.’”

A laughing Griffey Jr. responded that he gets his dad the same thing every Father’s Day: “I always buy you Old Spice, underwear and ties. You have a drawer full of them.

"My dad hit 152 home runs and that’s the person I wanted to be like," he added. "My hero growing up. That’s the person who taught me how to play and is still telling me how to play."