Griffey Picks Seattle, Allegedly Upset Over Story

After a hectic five days, Griffey has decided to re-sign with the Seattle Mariners.

He was allegedly upset over a report by David O'Brien and Terrence Moore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that said he told a friend he was going to pick the Braves:

The Braves’ star power is set to rise as Ken Griffey Jr. has decided to play for the Braves, a person close to the veteran outfielder and familiar with the negotiations told the Journal-Constitution.

...

The Braves and Griffey’s agent denied a deal had been struck, and Wren said the team would have no announcement Tuesday. The Seattle Times later also reported that Griffey had chosen the Braves over the Mariners.

So it's clear that O'Brien and Moore jumped the gun on this story. Whether this swayed Junior's decision to join his former team may never be known. I don't believe that it really influenced his decision that much; it would take a very thin-skinned person to get so upset at a premature story that he'd back out of a deal.

This leaves the Braves essentially with three viable options for the outfield:

• Sign free agent Garrett Anderson.
• Trade with the New York Yankees for either Nick Swisher or Xavier Nady.
• Plug young outfielder Brandon Jones into the lineup to platoon with Matt Diaz.

If the Braves still have a little money to throw around, I'd go with option one because it won't cost any prospects. Option three is a last resort, but it would prove whether or not Brandon Jones is going to develop into a major league player.