Jay Bruce idolized Ken Griffey Jr. growing up. Now, he’s hitting homers in the house the Mariners slugger built

Jay Bruce was raised Beaumont, Texas. But like so many other young baseball players who grew up in the 1990s, he was captivated by a future Hall of Famer who was lighting up Seattle.

Bruce revered Ken Griffey Jr. He wanted to be like the former Mariners slugger. He once even called the Kingdome — without success — asking if he could speak to Griffey.

“He hung the moon,” Bruce said. “He was my idol growing up, and I’m fortunate enough to call him a friend now.”

Many years later, Bruce, now in his 12th season in the majors, is playing for a Mariners club that regards Griffey as highly as he does, in the stadium Griffey helped build, and in the city where Griffey once saved baseball.

“When he came onto the scene and became Ken Griffey Jr. — ‘The Kid’ — it was here,” Bruce said.

Bruce said he remembers the home runs — Griffey led the American League in homers four times with Seattle in 1994 (40), 1997 (56), 1998 (56) and 1999 (48) — hit during those golden years in Seattle.

This season, Bruce’s early home run bursts have been reminiscent of the streaks his idol used to produce with Seattle.

Entering Wednesday night’s game in Kansas City, Bruce is pacing the AL with seven home runs, and is tied for the major-league lead.

He has hit a long ball in six of his last eight appearances — his best stretch since hitting homers in six of seven games between June 16-22, 2013, when he played for the Reds.

The Mariners have yet to lose a game where Bruce goes yard.

“The season is young, and I like to play the long game, and not get too high or low on anything, but we’ve been playing well, which is huge,” Bruce said.

Bruce, who was acquired by the Mariners from the New York Mets in December as part of the Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz deal, has become an everyday contributor for this Mariners team, which is off to the best start in franchise history.

When Bruce initially heard rumblings about his possible trade to Seattle, he reached out to Griffey, who he played with during his first season with the Reds in 2008.

This time, he had more success reaching his childhood hero, and got an opportunity to reconnect during spring training, and during the Mariners’ trip to Japan.

“He said I was going to do great here, and I’d love it,” Bruce said. “So far, it’s been a beautiful place. I love the stadium. The city is great.”

Bruce said Griffey thought he could be comfortable in T-Mobile Park — and that’s exactly what has happened.

“Jay’s had a very big voice in our clubhouse,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “I think speaking up in meetings, I think pulling younger guys aside. … I think it’s been a real welcome addition.”

Bruce was a first-round draft pick by Cincinnati in 2005, made his MLB debut with the Reds on May 27, 2008, and briefly played alongside Griffey there.

He hit the first of his 293 career home runs four days later, and Griffey homered in the same game, a win over the Atlanta Braves.

Griffey was traded to the White Sox at the deadline that summer, and eventually returned to Seattle before retiring in 2010.

Bruce said even sharing an outfield with Griffey for a short time was surreal.

“I could never have dreamed that up,” Bruce said. “It was something (where) I had to try to pinch myself a lot of times.

“But at the same time, I was expected to come and perform, and be a big part of that team. I tried to play it as cool as I could.”

Bruce was a standout in Cincinnati for more than eight years. He earned three NL All-Star selections before being traded to the New York Mets in 2016. He split the 2017 season between New York and Cleveland, before returning to the Mets in 2018.

Then came the deal with Seattle, and the opportunity for Bruce to find a home at another stadium Griffey once roamed.

“It’s been kind of backwards,” Bruce said. “I started with the Reds and went to the Mariners. He started with the Mariners and came to the Reds.

“I’m not like even a third or fourth of the player he was, but it’s cool to be in some of the same places.”

While Bruce won’t likely match Griffey’s 630 career home runs, he can make a mark with the Mariners in other ways.

Griffey hit 198 home runs in the Kingdome, but only 29 in what was previously known as Safeco Field — and never hit more than 14 in the park in a single season.

Bruce is on good pace to top that. He has four career homers in Seattle’s ballpark, including three in consecutive games during the Mariners’ opening homestand this season.

He’s hit four more homers during Seattle’s current road trip to Chicago and Kansas City and has been a big part of the surprising Mariners’ offensive outburst. Seattle leads the majors in homers, entering Wednesday’s game, with 33.

Bruce buys into the adage that hitting is contagious.

“Honestly, it feels a lot like when I was with the Indians in 2017,” Bruce said. “You didn’t want to be the guy to go up there and not have the quality at-bat.

“We have a lot of guys who are very competitive in that sense, and it’s awesome. It’s for the team. It really drives everyone in the right way. It’s been fun to be a part of, and fun to watch.”

This story was originally published April 10, 2019 at 5:15 PM.