INDIANAPOLIS — One of the most recognizable names in baseball history has been named the honorary pace car driver for the 108th Indianapolis 500.
Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. will lead the field of 33 drivers to the start of the Indy 500 on Sunday in the 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray.
“Driving the Pace Car and leading the field to start the Indy 500 is one of the coolest experiences,” Griffey Jr. said. “I came to the track a few years ago as a photographer and look forward to seeing the race from a different perspective.”
Griffey Jr. played 22 years as an outfielder in the MLB. He spent the majority of his career with the Seattle Mariners and Cincinnati Reds.
His 630 home runs rank as the seventh-most in MLB history.
“Every baseball fan knows Ken Griffey Jr.,” IMS President J. Douglas Boles said. “Two legends will come together as Griffey Jr. hops into the Corvette E-Ray to lead the field at the Racing Capital of the World.”
Ken Griffey Jr.'s father, Ken Griffey Sr., played for the Indianapolis Indians in 1973 and 1974 on his way up to the Cincinnati Reds. With the Reds, Griffey Sr. was a World Series champion.
