Update: 2/23/2009

Inside Griffey's choice: Why the slugger picked Seattle over Atlanta
Willie Mays, Hank Aaron and Griffey's daughter all pushed for Seattle

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/baseball/mlb/02/20/griffey.seattle...

Previous: 2/18/2009
http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=sportsnetwork&page=mlb...

Atlanta, GA (Sports Network) - Ken Griffey, Jr. has reportedly decided to play with Atlanta, rather than return to Seattle, and will soon finalize a deal to join the Braves for the 2009 season.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Griffey's agent and Braves general manager Frank Wren were scheduled to meet Tuesday to finish the deal, though an official announcement will not be made until as early as Wednesday. The report states that it will be a one-year contract in the $2 million range, with additional incentives tied to playing time.

Griffey, who split last season with Cincinnati and the Chicago White Sox, had indicated that he would either choose Atlanta, which is close to his Orlando home, or Seattle, where he began his career and became arguably one of the greatest players of all-time.

An 11-time All-Star, Griffey spent the first 11 years of his 20-year career with the Mariners. After being the top pick in the 1987 draft, Griffey helped put Seattle on the baseball map, finishing in the top-10 in the MVP vote in seven of his years with the franchise.

His best season came in 1997, winning his only MVP award with a .304 batting average while also posting league-highs of 56 home runs, 146 runs batted in, 125 runs scored and a .646 slugging percentage. In his time with the Mariners, Griffey totaled 398 homers and 1,152 RBI.