A sports miracle, if you will, as Washougal’s John Scukanec plays catch with Ken Griffey Jr at Seattle T-Mobile Park
Paul Valencia
ClarkCountyToday.com
John Scukanek, a baseball romanticist and Seattle Mariners fan from Washougal, who set out to play catch with someone every day for a year completed journey Wednesday morning.
In Seattle.
At T-Mobile Park.
A Journey with Junior.
That’s right. Day 365 of Catch 365 was John Scukanek playing catch with Ken Griffey Jr.
Seriously.
Clark County Today’s Paul Valencia was Day 348, and he wrote about Scukanek and the origins of Catch 365. For that story, see: Catch 365: One man’s quest to play catch every day for a year
Scukanek had hoped for something special for Day 365.
Then a sports miracle happened. Miracle? Well, yes. That’s the way Scukanek described it on social media.
“I’ve done the match. It doesn’t add up. There’s just now way. How did this happen?” Scukanec wrote.
“One year ago, I went out into my backyard at night, in the rain and I played catch with my son. I haven’t missed a day since.
“365 days later, somehow, I walked out onto the field at T-Mobile Park and played catch again. With Ken Griffey Jr.
“Baseball Hall of Famer. The greatest Mariners of all time. My favorite player.”
He noted how if someone had said a year ago that this could happen, he would have said no chance.
“But sports are filled with miracles, Hail Mary’s, and buzzer beaters. Dreams come true all the time. That’s why we watch. Yet I still don’t really believe what just happened.”
Oh, it happened. He took pictures and video.
To see more of Scukanek’s message, go to his Twitter page at: @jsukanec
Also read:
- The Study of Sports Podcast March 13, 2026: We discuss the state basketball tournaments, the incredible run from Columbia River boys, the state placing for Evergreen girls, and more
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Prairie High School’s Falcon Baseball Academy will host its first Extra-Innings Bazaar & Market on May 2, inviting local vendors and community members to support the school’s baseball program and student activities. - Trophy games: Columbia River boys finish fifth, Evergreen girls take sixth at state tournaments
Columbia River’s boys and Evergreen’s girls both reached the final day of their state basketball tournaments, returning to Vancouver with fifth- and sixth-place trophies. - High school state basketball: Columbia River suffers heartache in overtime loss in semifinals
Columbia River’s run to the Class 2A semifinals ended on a buzzer-beater in overtime, while Evergreen advanced to a trophy game and several other Clark County teams wrapped up their state tournament seasons. - Pro basketball: Vancouver Bears set to debut new name in new league
Vancouver’s professional basketball franchise has rebranded as the Vancouver Bears and will open its season in a new league March 7 at Hudson’s Bay High School.
