INDIANAPOLIS -- A legendary member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame will serve as the honorary Pace Car driver for the 108th Indianapolis 500, presented by Gainbridge.
According to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Ken Griffey Jr., a former outfielder for the Seattle Mariners and the Cincinnati Reds, will drive the 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray, leading the field of 33 drivers in the start of Sunday's race.
“Driving the Pace Car and leading the field to start the Indy 500 is one of the coolest experiences,” Griffey Jr. said in a news release. “I came to the track a few years ago as a photographer and look forward to seeing the race from a different perspective.”
In his hall of fame career, Griffey Jr. hit 630 home runs and was a 13-time All-Star. Griffey Jr., who also won 10 Gold Glove Awards in center field for his defense, is one of only 31 players to have played in major league games in four different decades.
Griffey Jr. was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2016, receiving 99.32% of the vote. The release said that he is also a member of the Mariners Hall of Fame and the Reds Hall of Fame.
“Every baseball fan knows Ken Griffey Jr.,” IMS President J. Douglas Boles said in the release. “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.”
The release said that this is the 35th time that Chevrolet will serve as the Pace Car before the race, dating back to 1948. For more information about Sunday's race, and to purchase tickets, click here.