Ken Griffey Jr. has been killing the Seattle Mariners offense with sub-.700 OPS totals in April, May and July.  The Mariners are among the worst teams in terms of DH production, with Griffey barely out-producing Jason Giambi, Magglio Ordonez, David Ortiz and Mike Jacobs.  He’s batting .197/.297/.359 as the cleanup hitter and .164/.284/.279 with runners in scoring position.

And he’s been getting a free pass from the local media, fans and even the most critical Mariner blogs, and understandably so.  The guy is one of the game’s all time greats and the best player in Seattle Mariners history.  He’s been part of many of the most memorable moments in Mariners lore and is credited with keeping Major League Baseball in Seattle.  He’ll likely be the first player to go into the Hall of Fame as a Mariner.  For those of us who were kids in the ’90s, he was plastered all over our bedroom walls.  He’s our hero.

We’re all still aware of who he is, but the grumblings are starting to become audible.  They’ve starting with the national analysts with little sentimental connection, and even the local beat has gingerly broached the subject.  At some point the team has to think about getting some more production out of the middle of the order if they want to continue to contend.

I’m not here to say that Griffey needs to be Silva’d or released or any such thing.  I love Griffey as you do and wouldn’t want him to go out like that.  But I think it’s fair to ask for some playing time redistribution.

I was chatting with someone earlier this evening and they produced a very interesting split for Mr. Griffey:

.254/.339/.449 after a day off.

.176/.245/.343 on days three or four in a row.

The usual small sample size caveats apply, but I think we’ve all noticed how visibly better his bat speed is after a day off or coming off the bench and have read the reports about how badly his knees swell up after a long stretch of starts.

A fresh Griffey is a productive Griffey, so why not give him a few more days off?

Switch Chris Shelton out with Mike Carp, have Griffey start 3-5 games per week with Mike Sweeney and Carp getting everything in between.  What’s the harm in that?

Is that disgracing a legend?  I don’t believe so– it’s not a benching. I believe Griffey is mature enough to realize that he’s not helping much when he’s fatigued and achy.  This is his last chance to win, so I’m sure he’d be more than willing to take a cue from Sweeney and do whatever is best for the team.

There are a couple of problems with letting Griffey rest more often.  For one, the fans that come out to the ballpark to try and get one last glimpse of Junior would be awfully disappointed.  I get that.  But I think everyone would walk away happy if the team used him as a pinch hitter, as they often do.  In some ways that is even more exciting than seeing him start, I would think.

Some would be concerned with the depth of the bench if another 1B/DH type like Carp was brought in to spell Griffey.  However, the team has been going with a short bench all season.  Josh Wilson was on the roster for a month, appearing in just 6 games and getting 2 plate appearances.  Right now Shelton is getting no use as a third stringer at 1B and DH.  The bottom line is that the starters and current “Team L. Ben Show” members are so versatile that a deep bench isn’t a requirement.  There are five guys that can play the outfield well and at least three more than can play it in a pinch.  Cedeno and Woodward can play all four infield positions while Jose Lopez and Jack Hannahan can effectively play three of four.

(Edit: I forgot that Ryan Rowland-Smith is going to be added to the roster over the weekend and Shelton is probably the guy that gets the ax.  That complicates things.)  (Edit 2: Corcoran DFA’d instead.  So… never mind.)

What would you do with Griffey if you were in charge?  Would you like to see Carp or someone else get some playing time to keep Junior fresh?  Or would you simply move Griffey down in the lineup?  Perhaps your love is so unconditional that you’re all for leaving things just how they are?