Ken Griffey Jr. hasn't played for the Cincinnati Reds since they traded him to the Chicago White Sox in July of 2008, but the Hall of Famer will still be one of the highest-paid employees of the team in 2022.
Griffey inked a nine-year/$112.5 million contract with the Reds ahead of the 2000 season, shortly after being acquired in a trade from the Seattle Mariners. The 13-time All-Star's deal included deferrals from 2009 to 2024, so Griffey is in the final years of receiving $3.59 million a year from the Reds:
To put things in perspective, the last time that Griffey played for the Reds, Joey Votto, now seen as a franchise icon, was a rookie. Jay Bruce was also a rookie. Some other notable players on the 2008 Reds were Edwin Encarnación, Adam Dunn, Paul Bako, Bronson Arroyo and Francisco Cordero.
Votto, Mike Moustakas and Shogo Akiyama are the only players with guaranteed salaries for 2022 higher than Griffey's, with both Luis Castillo and Tyler Mahle projected to make more through arbitration.
The 2008 Reds went 74-88. Given that they've now traded Sonny Gray, Eugenio Suárez and Jesse Winker this offseason -- with the expectation that Nick Castellanos will also depart in free agency -- the 2022 Reds will be hard-pressed to win even that many games.
Related
LISTEN NOW on the Audacy App
Sign Up and Follow Audacy Sports
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram