The Griffeys Play In The Same Game For First Time August 31, 1990

On this day in Baseball History August 31, 1990: Father and son duo Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr., became the first father and son duo to play in the same game for the Seattle Mariners against the Kansas City Royals at the Seattle Kingdom. Griffey Sr. and Griffey Jr. batted second and third respectively in the lineup. The game also marked the first time that a father and son duo would both get hits, back to back as a matter of fact, in the same game.

The article Griffey Sr. and Jr. first to play together in MLB by Larry Schwartz for ESPN Classic from ESPN.com dated November 19, 2003 describe how Ken Griffey Jr., felt during that fateful game:

Aug. 31, 1990

Signed two days ago by the Seattle Mariners after being released by the Cincinnati Reds, 40-year-old Ken Griffey Sr. is about to make history tonight with his 20-year-old son. They are the first father-and-son tandem to play in a major-league game. Earlier in the day, Griffey Jr. tells family agent Brian Goldberg, "It's really going to be weird tonight, playing with my dad." Later that afternoon, Griffey Sr. tells Goldberg, "It's going to be weird tonight, playing with my son."

As the Griffey's trot to their positions, center-fielder Jr. gives his dad, in left, a quick wave. In the bottom of the first inning, Sr., batting second, singles, the 2,091st hit in his 18-year career. Jr. follows with a single (No. 275). Both score in the Mariners' 5-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

"I wanted to cry or something," Jr. says after going 1-for-4, same as dad. "It just seemed like a father-son game, like we were out playing catch in the backyard. But we were actually playing a real game.

"The weird thing was all the guys are yelling, 'Let's go, Ken,' and I'm yelling, 'Let's go, Dad.'"

The boxscore for that game can be found on the Baseball Reference.com website: August 31, 1990 Kansas City Royals vs. Seattle Mariners

The MLB Network's Remembering Griffey dad and son:

The Griffeys would make more history in the 1990 season becoming the first father and son duo to hit back-to-back home runs off of California Angels starter Kirk McCaskill.

Here's video footage of the Griffeys hitting back-to-back homeruns:

Truly special moments in major league history. Will we ever see another father and son duo playing together in the major leagues? Only time will tell.

Until Then Keep Playing Ball,
Baseball Sisco
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For Further Reading:
- Click Here to access Ken Griffey Sr.'s career statistics from Baseball Reference.com
- Click Here to access Ken Griffey Jr.'s career statistics from Baseball Reference.com
- Click Here to access the article Griffeys made home run history in '90: Father, son first to go back-to-back in Major Leagues by Patrick Brown from MLB.com dated August 8, 2007