A familial connection to baseball laid the groundwork. Both of Sorrell’s grandfathers played professional baseball. Griffin, his mom Shannon’s father, was the Houston Astros’ first-round draft pick in 1966 and pitched for 14 MLB seasons. Greg’s father, Billy Sorrell, spent parts of three seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies, the San Francisco Giants and the Kansas City Royals. Even Greg himself was drafted out of high school by the Boston Red Sox in 1990.
Billy Sorrell passed away when Caden was 4-years-old. Griffin spoke at his funeral service. The two became close after Greg and Shannon became engaged.Caden Sorrell, right, sits next to his grandfather Tom Griffin. Griffin was drafted by the Houston Astros in 1966 and he pitched for 14 MLB seasons. Sorrell was teammates with Willie Mays in San Francisco. Griffin shared a rookie card with Fergie Jenkins. Sorrell played with Jenkins in Philadelphia. Griffin struck out 200 batters in his rookie season with Houston in 1969, and played with Willie Stargell in Pittsburgh, Joe Morgan in San Francisco and Dave Winfield in San Diego. Sorrell became the 10,000th all-time player to reach the majors in 1965.Here’s one: Griffin, who pitched nearly 1,500 innings, also hit 10 home runs.
Maybe Caden, who “packs a lot of strength” in his 6-3 frame according to MLB.com, can credit Griffin for his power. Griffin claims that his grandson has already blown past where he ever was tools-wise. His intensity and dedication — traits that Griffin noticed on a recent trip to Flower Mound when Caden, in the midst of the school year, woke up at 5 a.m. every day for extra workouts — is at a different level, too.Yeah, Griffin played with him, too.