There was no one quite like Ken Griffey Jr.
He exuded swagger when he took the plate, standing tall as a titan in the batter’s box. The epitome of a five-tool player, Griffey had it all. The looks, the charm and, most importantly, the ability, to become one of the sport’s greatest icons.
His stride at the plate was gallant. His power was prodigious. He paired style with substance, too, dispatching 630 bombs into the great big lagoon that is big league stands.
The vast majority of that yield came in Seattle. And it was there that Griffey cemented his status in baseball history. Not just for his excellent production, but also his signature style: the backwards cap.
Seeing Ken Griffey Jr hitting BP today with the hat backwards sure brought back some good memories pic.twitter.com/TcmjkXO8xR
— BaseballHistoryNut (@nut_history) March 17, 2023
Griffey rocked the lid like few players in MLB. He was more knight than ballplayer, his nautical armor paired with his version of a lance, a Louisville Slugger.
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So, just why did Griffey flip his cap the wrong way? His dad, as it turns out. Here’s what you need to know:
Why did Ken Griffey Jr. wear his hat backwards?
Griffey’s decision to reverse course on his baseball cap became one of the indelible images of 1990s baseball. It was immortalized in countless advertisements and montages, as well the side of his iconic shoes, the Nike Air Griffeys, and his Nike “Swingman” logo.
Yet the actual reason for his fashion choice wasn’t fashion at all. Rather, it was another way to honor his dad, Ken Griffey Sr.
The story is as follows: the younger Griffey always wanted to look like his dad. So when he would see his dad wearing the lid as a child, he wanted to emulate him.
There was but one problem: Griffey Sr. had a thick afro. His son, meanwhile, had a “peanut head.”
His solution: wear his father’s cap in the opposite direction. After a while, the gesture just stuck. And by the time he broke out in the big leagues, legions of young players — many of them Black — looked to mimic The Kid’s look.
Ken Griffey Jr. had young baseballers around the globe wearing backwards caps. It wasn’t a fashion statement. Junior says he had a “peanut head”, and he just wanted to wear his dad’s hat!@thepivot https://t.co/6DOkE3qwl3@FredTaylorMade @OfficialCrowder @alicialauren pic.twitter.com/RkOdBsT3An
— Ryan Clark (@Realrclark25) October 4, 2022
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The rest, as they say, was history. Griffey retired as Seattle’s greatest-ever player and was inducted into Cooperstown in 2016. His Hall of Fame plaque places a regularly-orientated busby over him rather than his signature look.
Folks don’t mind too much, though; especially not with his influence — on both the game and its style — increasing with every passing season.