Ken Griffey Jr.

The Kid — the most aesthetically gifted player of his generation and the purest hitter of the 1990s home run era without verifiable PED association. Ken Griffey Jr's sweet left-handed swing, his backwards cap and his joy for the game made him the most popular player in baseball across the 1990s. 630 career home runs and ten consecutive Gold Gloves in centre field, where his catches were as spectacular as his hitting. His career was curtailed by chronic hamstring and knee injuries that cost him three full seasons, otherwise he would have been the all-time home run leader.

George Kenneth Griffey Jr. was born in Donora, Pennsylvania in 1969, the son of major leaguer Ken Griffey Sr. The Seattle Mariners selected him first overall in the 1987 MLB Draft. His 22-season career produced 630 home runs, a .284 batting average and 13 Gold Gloves — the most by any outfielder in baseball history. He won the AL MVP in 1997. He was a 13-time All-Star. He and his father became the only father-son combination to play on the same major league team simultaneously in 1990. His effortless swing — generating power without apparent effort — and his spectacular defensive plays in centre field made him the most aesthetically gifted player of the 1990s. He was the unanimous choice for player of the decade by several publications for the 1990s. Persistent knee and leg injuries derailed his career in Cincinnati, limiting him to fewer than 100 games in four of his Reds seasons. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2016 with 99.3% of the vote — the highest percentage in history at the time. He is the defining baseball player of the 1990s.

Five-tool player with exceptional hitting, power, speed, fielding, and arm strength

One of the greatest players of the 1990s, widely regarded as having the sweetest swing in baseball history