MEQUON, Wis. — Griffin Cameron is many things. He’s a twin. He’s “goofy”. He’s a high-average hitter. He’s a home-grown University of Kentucky ballplayer. 

But most of all? He’s a menace on the basepaths. 

The Lakeshore Chinooks leadoff man played his first game in Mequon on June 24th and stole three bases, living up to his electric, Don-Toliver-inspired walk-up song: Bandit.

“I do consider myself a bandit; I’m stealing all the time,” Griffin joked.

Griffin is slashing .381/.466/.412 through 26 games in his first taste of Wisconsin baseball *. He’s added 28 stolen bases while getting caught just twice, good for a 93.3% success rate and the ninth-most steals in the Northwoods League*.He ranks first on the team in average and stolen bases while registering the second-most Runs Created (RC) behind Chinooks All-Star Dominic Kibler.

After adding an outfield assist to his three swipes in his first game with Lakeshore, Griffin’s high-level defense and game-breaking speed were obvious. What teammates and coaches weren’t expecting initially, though, was how dynamic the lefty is at the plate.

“He just finds a way on,” said 2024 Chinooks teammate and fellow speedster AJ Garcia. “If it’s a bunt for a hit in a count you least expect, or something else, he finds a hole every time.”

Griffin says baserunning is an underutilized skill in an ever-increasingly power-oriented sport. Even if it’s not true for others, there’s far more than three true outcomes for the Lexington, Kentucky native. 

He gets on base in nearly half of his plate appearances and has recorded four separate three-steal days with Lakeshore, watching pitchers’ breaths and jolts to cue his motion. He punches out less than once per game and has reached base safely in nearly half (46.6%) of his plate appearances*, providing a strong table-setting approach for the Chinooks.

As is typical for SEC freshmen — only about 1.5 freshmen per SEC team had recorded 30 ABs as of April 7th this year, Aria Gerson of the Tenneseean said — Griffin didn’t get to show his skills much with the Wildcats. But, he’s confident he’ll be a contributor for a school that just qualified for the eight-team College World Series.

“(With Lakeshore), I can be myself, be more free, and be more relaxed while having fun,” the freshman said. “I’ll hope to carry that into next season at Kentucky.”

Griffin reveled in Kentucky’s first-ever trip to the college mountain top as he fulfilled his childhood dreams of donning Wildcat blue. “That 20,000-plus people would come just to see you play is amazing,” he said.

The former No. 1 outfield prospect in Kentucky expects to keep his frenetic pace up with the ‘Cats this fall and next spring. Griffin registered at 6.49 seconds in his 60-yard dash — comparable to MLB stars like Bobby Witt Jr. (6.40) or Garrett Mitchell (6.35) — as a high schooler in his Perfect Game state showcase.

Last year, Griffin played away from family for the Jackson Rockabillys of the Prospect League in Memphis, TN, where he racked up 34 steals. Now, with the Chinooks, he plays with an extra chip on his shoulder as one of the Northwoods League’s resident base-robbers. 

Many scouting services, like Perfect Game, tout Griffin’s squeaky-clean running technique, but Garcia and hitting coach Levi Jensen also highlighted the six-footer’s willingness to steal.

“There’s multiple guys on this team that take the risk of stealing (often),” Jensen said. “But for Griff, there’s very little risk and big rewards.”

“If I get thrown out, I’m never gonna stop. I’m going again,” Griffin said.

A true competitor, Griffin has moments of stern behavior. However, they usually don’t last long. Jensen called the 20-year old “goofy” and a “joker”. He always has a smile plastered on his face, even sometimes when he’s sprinting to second, and from center field he banters with teammates while soaring into the gaps to steal hits like a burglar.

Nicknamed ‘Hawk’ at Kentucky, Griffin isn’t the only Cameron who flies. His grandfather Walter played for West Chester University (PA) baseball years ago, and his twin sister Morgan is equally competitive. Griffin and Morgan have arm wrestling and push-up contests, mother Kellie says, but at the end of the day, they are very happy to still be close geographically even as young adults. Morgan attends Asbury University in Lexington, just thirty-odd minutes from her brother. 

“They are each other’s biggest supporter,” Kellie said emphatically. 

Morgan was his advocate even on their birthdays, which she begrudgingly spent at stadiums nearly every June of their childhood. But for the first time this year, they couldn’t spend their special day together as Morgan left for a trip and Griffin participated in the first game of Kentucky’s Super Regional. 

With Griffin on the Chinooks, the Camerons have made sure to visit beautiful Mequon this summer for a few games. Kellie says they “love the family-friendly atmosphere” at Moonlight Graham Field and have “enjoyed local Wisconsin favorites like cheese curds and Fish Fry Friday.” 

The roughly seven-hour drive isn’t easy, but it’s nothing the Camerons haven’t done for Griffin before. What is different for the Camerons is instead of hotels, Griffin is staying with fellow Kentucky and Lakeshore hitter Ethan Hindle.

“Ethan is probably the reason I’m here in Lakeshore. I was super, super excited when I heard I was coming to the Northwoods League with him,” Griffin said. “This is the best-case scenario for me (and Ethan) this summer.” 

Griffin loves his journey with the Chinooks, as he says it offers him another chance to prove his doubters wrong. He has long been told he didn’t have the power it takes to play in the SEC. He’s now an SEC hitter. He has been underestimated as an outfielder. Well, he’s been there. 

As Jensen says, Griffin is “laser-focused always” and “knows who he is” in the sport of baseball: a high on-base guy and a lethal looter on the bases. He’s certainly making the most of his time in the white and blue as Lakeshore’s leadoff hitter and a huge positive presence in the dugout.

All that’s left for the 2024 Chinooks’ greatest bandit to steal his way to? The MLB.

“He’s just coming off his freshman year at a great school and is having a great summer,” Jensen said. “His future setup (could) well be The Show.”

*All Lakeshore stats as of July 29th.*

Article written by David Jacobs. Cover image by Connor Ziman.