Problem: Griffey was born in Donora, Pennsylvania, on November 21, 1969. (He shares a birthday with another Donora native and Hall-of-Famer, Stan Musial.) His family moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, where his father, Ken Griffey Sr., played for the Cincinnati Reds, when Ken Jr. was six years old. Ken Jr. was in the clubhouse during his father's back-to-back championships in the 1975 and 1976 World Series.

As a free agent, Griffey was courted by the Mariners and the Atlanta Braves. The national media was dubious about Griffey's declining skills, with The Washington Post noting "...the Mariners are not about to sign Griffey for baseball reasons; they're bringing him back to Seattle to sell tickets." Griffey ultimately accepted a contract offer from the Mariners on February 18, 2009, after "agonizing" over the decision. Griffey indicated he was motivated by sentimental reasons toward Seattle, where he received an overwhelmingly positive reception when he last played there as a Cincinnati Red in June 2007, but was inclined towards the Braves for its proximity to his home in Orlando, Florida, and his desire to be with his family during the season. Apparently, Griffey was very close to signing with the Braves; however, a premature report emerged from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that an Atlanta deal was done and a conversation with Willie Mays and his own 13-year-old daughter played a factor in his choice. Griffey once again sported #24 with the Mariners; the team had not issued the number to any player or coach in the nine years between his two stints in Seattle.  Griffey went 1-2 with a home run in his regular season debut against the Minnesota Twins. The home run was Griffey's eighth Opening Day home run; as of 2013, he is tied with Frank Robinson and Adam Dunn for first place in this category. On April 15, 2009, Griffey hit his 400th home run as a Mariner (613th of career), off Los Angeles Angels pitcher Jered Weaver, becoming the first MLB player to hit 400 home runs with one club (Mariners) and 200 home runs with another (Reds). AP stated, "Griffey returned to the Mariners in 2009 and almost single-handedly transformed what had been a fractured, bickering clubhouse with his leadership, energy and constant pranks."  On June 23, 2009, at Safeco Field, Griffey hit the 5,000th home run in franchise history, off San Diego Padres pitcher Chad Gaudin. This was Griffey's 619th career home run. On September 1, Griffey hit career home run #621 at the new Yankee Stadium, off Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte in the sixth inning. It marked the 44th different ballpark in which he had hit a home run. On August 12, 2009, against his former team, the Chicago White Sox, he hit an RBI single in the bottom of the 14th inning to win the game, 1-0, for the Mariners.  Griffey returned to the Mariners for the 2010 campaign with a similar contract to that of 2009, but struggled offensively over the first two months while posting a .184 batting average. On April 27, Griffey passed Andre Dawson for 45th on the career hit list. On May 20, 2010, in a game against the Toronto Blue Jays, Griffey hit an RBI single off Blue Jays' closer Kevin Gregg to win the game, 4-3, for the Mariners. After starting the ninth inning trailing 3-1, the Mariners rallied in the bottom of the ninth to load the bases on two singles and a walk, then tied the game via a walk and a sacrifice fly. The walk-off single was the final hit and RBI of Griffey's Major League Baseball career, and moved him past Rafael Palmeiro to 14th on the all-time RBI list.

did he win any awards?

Answer with quotes: moved him past Rafael Palmeiro to 14th on the all-time RBI list.


Problem: Mays was born in 1931 in Westfield, Alabama. His father, Cat Mays, was a talented baseball player with the Negro team for the local iron plant. His mother, Annie Satterwhite, was a gifted basketball and track star in high school. His parents never married.

Mays began his major league career on a sour note, with no hits in his first 12 at bats. On his 13th at-bat, however, he hit a towering home run over the left field roof of the Polo Grounds off of future Hall of Famer Warren Spahn. Spahn later joked, "I'll never forgive myself. We might have gotten rid of Willie forever if I'd only struck him out." Mays's batting average improved steadily throughout the rest of the season. Although his .274 average, 68 RBI and 20 homers (in 121 games) were among the lowest of his career, he still won the 1951 Rookie of the Year Award. During the Giants' comeback in August and September 1951 to tie the Dodgers in the pennant race, Mays' fielding and strong throwing arm were instrumental to several important Giants victories. Mays was in the on-deck circle when Bobby Thomson hit the Shot Heard 'Round the World against Ralph Branca and the Brooklyn Dodgers to win the three-game playoff 2-1 after the teams were tied at the end of the regular season.  The Giants went on to meet the New York Yankees in the 1951 World Series. In Game 1, Mays, Hank Thompson and Hall of Famer Monte Irvin comprised the first all-African-American outfield in major league history four years after the color line was broken. Mays hit poorly while the Giants lost the series 4-2. The six-game set was the only time that Mays and retiring Yankee ace Joe DiMaggio would compete against each other.  Mays was a popular figure in Harlem. Magazine photographers were fond of chronicling his participation in local stickball games with kids. It was said that in the urban game of hitting a rubber ball with an adapted broomstick handle, Mays could hit a shot that measured "six sewers" (the distance of six consecutive New York City manhole covers, nearly 300 feet).

When did he start playing baseball?

Answer with quotes:
1951