El béisbol era el deporte favorito de Brock Vereen cuando era niño en la década de 1990, pero el ex profundo de la NFL siente que el juego no siempre le dio la bienvenida. El surgimiento de un miembro del Salón de la Fama cambió eso.
Vereen dice que Ken Griffey Jr. es el atleta negro que más lo inspiró, y la influencia de Griffey Jr. fue mucho más profunda que su swing perfecto.
«Como joven negro, miras el béisbol, especialmente en los años 90, y no te sientes bienvenido en algunos aspectos», dijo Vereen, analista de Big Ten Network. «Pero Ken Griffey Jr. era el jugador más genial con el sombrero al revés que tenía, el swing más hermoso hasta el día de hoy. Y aunque diría que un problema con el béisbol hasta el día de hoy es la accesibilidad, en ese entonces nunca me sentí más en casa que ver a Ken Griffey Jr. y tratar de imitar todo lo que hizo en el campo».
Todo es la palabra clave, ya que Griffey Jr. hizo exactamente eso durante más de dos décadas en la MLB. Griffey Jr. ganó un MVP, hizo 13 equipos All-Star y ganó 10 Guantes de Oro y siete Sluggers de Plata durante sus 22 temporadas con los Marineros de Seattle, los Rojos de Cincinnati y los Medias Blancas de Chicago. Griffey Jr., miembro del Salón de la Fama del Béisbol de 2016, tiene la séptima mayor cantidad de jonrones (630) en la historia de la MLB y la octava mayor cantidad de extrabases (1,192).
Sin embargo, más que los números, el comportamiento y el estilo sin esfuerzo de Griffey Jr. lo convirtieron en una inspiración para Vereen y muchos otros jóvenes fanáticos.
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