Baseball was only his fourth-best sport. Ken Griffey Sr was an explosive high school wide receiver who chose professional baseball out of economic necessity when he learned he was going to be a teenage father. This deep dive pulls him out from under his son’s shadow.

We trace his journey from fatherless teen in Donora, Pennsylvania, to a crucial cog in one of baseball’s greatest dynasties, and the family ties that produced a history-making father-son moment.

• Being drafted in the 29th round as a raw athletic flyer
• His role providing contact and speed for the Big Red Machine
• The controversial 1976 batting title decision by Sparky Anderson
• The Yankees incident that shaped his son’s lifelong vow
• Playing alongside his son in Seattle and their back-to-back home runs