Ken Griffey Jr. statue gets its bat back

SEATTLE — The bronze bat ripped from the hand of the Ken Griffey Jr. statue has been reattached.

"A crew came out from 2 Ravens Studio down in Tacoma on Saturday morning, and they went to work on the bat," Rebecca Hale, Director of Public Information for the Mariners told KIRO 7 Monday.

"It felt strange for it to have been missing for so long, but the important thing was that they took their time and they did it right. The bat's been reinforced so it will be here for a long time," Hale said.

In October, a man was seen breaking the bat off of the statue before running from the scene. At the time, a spokesperson for the Seattle Mariners told KIRO 7 that the Seattle Police Department quickly recovered the bat, and arrested a suspect. The suspect was booked on accusations of felony property damage.

Surveillance video is shown below:

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"When I heard that the bat was actually taken... I just couldn't believe it.... When you think about his (Griffey's) accomplishments and so forth, he deserves the honor... so it's very nice to see the bat back because it's in its rightful place with its rightful recognition,"  Mariners fan Glenn Wisegarver told KIRO 7 Monday.

On April 13, 2017, the Seattle Mariners unveiled the 7-foot-tall statue that sits on top of a 4-foot granite base. It includes a Mariners 20th anniversary patch and a patch recognizing the 50th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier in baseball.

"One of the things I'm known for is my swing and I think it was pretty much going to be a given (that would be the pose)," Griffey said during the unveiling ceremony. "They pretty much nailed it. It was overwhelming to see something like that."

The statue was sculpted by Lou Cella, who also created a statue of former Mariners broadcaster Dave Niehaus that sits on the right field concourse of the stadium.​

Griffey became the first Mariners player to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame last year. The Mariners officially retired his No. 24 in August, making him the first player to have his number retired by the franchise.

"When people do things for you, you have to show your appreciation," Griffey said. "Seattle has gone over and above my expectations of an organization. It's been a whirlwind for 18 months — January of last year to even now — it's hard to describe. I just try to sit back and not do anything because I don't want to mess it up."

Griffey played 22 big-league seasons with the Mariners, Reds and White Sox. A 13-time All-Star and 10-time Gold Glove Award winner in center field, Griffey hit 630 home runs, sixth all-time, and drove in 1,836 runs. He also was the American League MVP in 1997, drove in at least 100 runs in eight seasons, and won seven Silver Slugger Awards.

Pitchers and catchers are set to report to the Mariners' spring training facility on Feb. 14.

Information from the Associated Press is included in this post.

Associated Press