Why not? With only 15,000 or so in the Safeco Field stands, who’s left to object?

In fact, why stop at Griffey?

They should see what it would take to get Edgar Martinez back in uniform. I’ll bet Jay Buhner is still fit enough to play. They could call Mike Blowers down from the booth, he’s already traveling with the team anyway.

Then they could track down Matt “Guitar” Murphy and “Blue” Lou on the sax so they could get the whole band back together.

What do they have to lose?

If the Seattle Mariners were doing anything at all, discussions about adding the 38-year-old Griffey to the roster would be almost senseless.

It would be one of those short-sighted, publicity-motivated homecomings that so rarely works in sports; it would be stepping backward for a team that desperately needs to make positive yardage any way it can.

But the mute commentary made by 30,000 empty seats, and the mathematics of the standings that show a possibility of falling out of the race before Memorial Day, combine to suggest that the Mariners should consider every possible option.

Even Griffey. In fact, especially Griffey.

As the scuttlebutt stands, the nose-diving Reds want Griffey to hit his 600th dinger for them. After that … let the bidding begin.

Surely they’d want a prospect, which might be taxing for the Mariners after the recent Erik Bedard deal. The other option is to wait until the end of this season and assume that Cincinnati will decline Griffey’s $16.5 million option, and he will be a free agent.

All we have to do to be assured of the mutual attraction is to remember last summer’s Griffey lovefest at Safeco when he returned with the Reds. Fans went daffy, and Mariners president Chuck Armstrong strongly reiterated his undying affection for Junior. I think I might have even seen the hints of little tiny tears sprouting from an emotional Griffey, as well.

Armstrong can’t say anything now because Griffey is under contract with the Reds and to voice his desire to be reunited would be considered tampering.

Griffey is hitting .244 with four homers and 15 RBI. That RBI total would tie him for second on the Mariners, and the home run total would rank fourth on the team. So, he might supply a bit of pop from the left-hand side of the plate.

The Mariners are seemingly set for outfielders at the moment, so an option is to plug him in at DH in place of Jose Vidro.

Having him join the team next season might be an easier fit because they could dump Richie Sexson, bump Raul Ibañez to first, switch Wladimir Balentien to left and put Junior in right field.

(That’s assuming they can’t get Buhner and Edgar back, too, which would require more lineup shuffling).

Of course, nobody knows how many more trips to the warning track are left in Junior’s hamstrings. But that’s a chance with any player nearing 40.

And the name on the jersey still says “Griffey.” Even in this economy, people will pay to see that.

In fact, since he’s been gone for nine seasons, it might be the chance for a whole new group of dads to take their sons to see Junior, and to tell them the stories of 1995, of the days in the Kingdome, of the leaping catches, of the home runs flying over the fence every day.

As our incomparable baseball beat writer Larry LaRue always tells me, there’s only two acceptable states for a baseball team: You’re either winning now or you’re building to win in the future.

Griffey probably doesn’t really fit in either criteria.

So he’s not a cure for what ails the Mariners. Not in the long run, at least. He might not even be a realistic Band-Aid.

But he just might be interesting enough to help people out there forget about all the other problems dogging this team for a while.

Dave Boling: 253-597-8440

Dave.boling@thenewstribune.com">Dave.boling@thenewstribune.com