[More Cowbell]

I liken Griffey's trip to Seattle like running into an ex-girlfriend - all you remember are the good times and when you part you think of what "might have been." Then after you reflect a little and get back into your routine, you start to remember the "other stuff" that you didn't like.

Griffey said yesterday, "I always thought I'd be back," he said. "I just didn't know when. As an athlete you always want to retire with the team you started with. . . . I'm no different than anyone else."

If the Reds can get their younger players (Votto/Homer/???) to come through and get some help from their bullpen and proven leadoff hitter, Griffey will forget about going back to Seattle.

Just remember though, Griffey has one more year on his contract and a team option for 2009 for decision time is coming quicker than some Reds fans want to believe.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/a...706250358/

Don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those people who think signing Griffey was a big mistake and can't wait to get him gone. I think his salary is actually a bargain for a year's worth of a fully functioning Junior, as he has shown this year what he can do when healthy. If he had not been injured so many times, no one in Cincy would be pushing to trade him.

Trading Junior is such a tricky proposition. You have to think that most teams would try to lowball the Reds due to his injury history, and you can't blame them for being wary. But the team can't give him away for next to nothing, because if he stays healthy and has a couple of all-star seasons (not to mention hitting 600 homers) for another team, the Reds will look like chumps.

I do agree with you that if the Reds started winning, Griffey's attitude would certainly change. I firmly believe that winning solves most chemistry problems on a team. However, I think that Junior sees what I see when I look at the Reds: a team with too many holes to contend in the near future.