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Best Cincinnati Reds Ever: George Foster v. Ken Griffey Sr.

By Brandon Shrider |
Photo via Getty Images
Photo via Getty Images

Second Round Matchup | No. 3 George Foster v. No. 6 Ken Griffey

The next second round matchup in our “Best Red Ever” tournament features two premier hitters from the Cincinnati Reds’ Big Red Machine.

Foster:

George Foster’s first round win (91 percent of the vote) over Wally Post in our Best Cincinnati Reds Ever tournament — along with a detailed write-up — can be found here.

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George Foster didn’t join the Cincinnati Reds until a midseason trade during the 1971 season — and once he did he hardly made a name for himself. But four years later he began to shows glimpses of a future All-Star when he hit .300 with 23 home runs and 78 RBIs.  Foster broke out entirely the following season as a key player for the Big Red Machine.He hit .306 with 29 home runs and a league-leading 121 RBIs making his first of five All-Star appearances and was runner-up to teammate Joe Morgan in the MVP race. Foster one-upped himself in 1977 by winning the MVP award ahead of Greg Luzinskiand future Red Dave Parker. He led the league with 52 home runs — the first Red to eclipse the half-century mark — 149 RBIs, 124 runs, .631 SLG and a 1.013 OPS — and paired it with a .320 average and 61 walks.

Highlights

— ranks sixth in career home runs (244) with the Reds

— ranks ninth in career RBIs (861) with the Reds

— ranks fourth in career SLG (.514) with the Reds

— ranks seventh in career OPS (.870) for the Reds

— Most Valuable Player winner

— Five-time All-Star

— Two-time World Series champion

— Reds Hall of Fame inductee

Griffey:

Ken Griffey’s win in the first round (73 percent) over Dave Parker — along with a detailed write-up — can be found here.

Ken Griffey Sr. certainly wasn’t his son, but he was still a three-time All-Star for the Cincinnati Reds from 1973-81. He was a key contributor on the back-to-back World Series champion squads in 75 and 76. His numbers during the playoffs don’t jump off the screen sporting just a .240 average, but he did knock in 11 runs, was a perfect 8 for 8 on steal attempts and struck out just eight times in 20 postseason games.Senior’s regular season numbers are more impressive. While he didn’t have the lethal power-speed combination of his son, Griffey did carry a career .303 average with the Reds with 71 home runs and 156 stolen bases. He had a .370 OBP, had 212 doubles and 63 triples. Outside of raw over-the-fence power, a reasonable case can be made for Senior being the better hitter. He also had two 10-20 seasons as well as a 34 stolen base season in 1976.

Highlights

— ranks 15th in career batting average (.303) for the Reds

— ranks 18th in career OBP (.370) with the Reds

— ranks 18th in career hits (1,275) with the Reds

— ranks 22nd in career at-bats (4,206) with the Reds

— Reds Hall of Fame inductee

Next: Find the tournament breakdown here!

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