When Ken Griffey Jr. is inducted the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., in less than two weeks, he will be rightly lauded for his baseball exploits, nearly unparalleled in his era.
But to Thomas Truncale of Odessa, Fla., who turned 18 last Saturday, his memory of Griffey will be far more personal. Truncale’s mind will flash back — as it does often, with joy and gratitude — to the day in September 2009, when for two hours he was the most important person in Griffey’s world. And when his own world changed inalterably.
Truncale was a Make-A-Wish kid, having endured more medical challenges than an 11-year-old should have to.