The Virginia Gentlemen Endorse: Major League Baseball featuring Ken Griffey, Jr.

" For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land."


Although the late Detroit Tigers broadcaster Ernie Harwell opened the season's first spring training game with this excerpt from the Song of Solomon, it is just as appropriate for Opening Day, which has always marked the first day of spring to me (even if the weather hasn't complied this year).  Although I'm sure all of you reading along have been busy practicing miming your favorite player's batting stance, throwing around the old whiffle ball, or perfecting your game-calling style (yes, John Mayer is funnier than you think), it's time to work on another cherished tradition integral to the national past time: taking LSD video games.  When it comes to middle-class caucasian males between the ages of 22 and 27, there's only one game that matters -- Major League Baseball featuring Ken Griffey, Jr.

Late 80s pretty boy swag, indeed.

Ken Griffey, Jr. is one of the great "What if?" sports stories of the past two decades.  Objectively, he had an unbelievable career that will likely lead him to the Hall of Fame: 630 home runs (5th all time), an American League MVP award, 7 Silver Sluggers, and 10 Gold Gloves (even though they're largely a joke).  He was an everyday player at the age of 19 and was the face of baseball (and Nike) in the 90s before the McGwire-Sosa home run chase in '98.  Sadly, the 2000s were not nearly as kind to Junior, as he suffered a slew of significant injuries over the course of the decade that sapped his productivity and power.  At his peak, he was the best player in baseball and would have been one of the best (if not the best) players of all time had he not effectively lost years of his career to injury.

Nevertheless, his legacy will continue to live on for decades to come due to his Nintendo video games.  Although great baseball video games have preceded and succeeded the Gfiffey games, the N64 Griffey games have stood the test of time and improved as they've aged, much like a fine wine, Mario Kart, and Marisa Tomei.  In an age where there are few universal rites of passage into manhood, Griffey baseball provides an outlet for current and burgeoning Gentlemen to engage in competitive play and competitive banter.  Hall of Fame Brooklyn Dodgers catcher Roy Campanella once remarked that in order to play baseball for a living you needed to be a man, but "you got to have a lot of little boy in you, too."  This game understands that reality and brings out both sides of the Gentleman.

With a legendary theme song ("Call me Junior! It's showtime!") that resides in the pantheon of athlete-sung songs, fairly realistic gameplay (with the exception of the 106 mph super fastball) and the stars of yesteryear, MLB featuring Griffey provides hours of nostalgic entertainment worth of an endorsement by the Virginia Gentlemen.

--J.J. Gittes