And now, a look back at the historic deliciousness of Ken Griffey Jr.'s chocolate bar
It's pretty common for iconic baseball players to make their mark on pop culture more broadly.
But, back on April 24, 1989, Ken Griffey Jr. managed to go where very, very few big leaguers have gone before or since: He got his very own candy bar.
Pretty proud of myself for keeping this Ken Griffey Jr. Chocolate Bar intact and edible, since 1989. #humblebrag pic.twitter.com/3BS187hZCv
— eammon (@eammon) July 24, 2016
The No. 1 overall pick in the 1987 Draft at age 17, The Kid was a big deal in Seattle before he even saw the field for the Mariners. So, by the time the 19-year-old rookie started crushing dingers and Spiderman-ing all over Major League outfields, Griffey Mania was in full swing -- and the Pacific Trading Card Company had a novel marketing idea.
Owner Mike Cramer convinced the outfielder to sign on for the Ken Griffey Jr. Milk Chocolate Bar, a 2 1/2-inch by 3 1/2-inch piece of chocolate intended to mimic the look of a baseball card. There were 12 different molds of Griffey in action, and each piece came wrapped in gold foil with Griffey's stats on it. At the time, Griffey was just the second baseball player to earn his very own official candy bar, joining the Reggie (as in Jackson) Bar.
As you might expect of something that combined Ken Griffey Jr. and chocolate, the bars soon became a hit, with over one million sold in the first year alone. You can even find some still for sale on eBay, going for anywhere from $9-$50. Just don't try to buy one for Griffey himself: As it turns out, he's allergic to chocolate.
"Sure enough, I broke out, but it was worth it," he told the Baltimore Sun in May of his rookie year, after copping to eating three bars before a game. "The next day, I was all swollen up." Of course, because he's Ken Griffey Jr., he still went 4-for-4 that night.
