"We don't know what we're doing next year with respect to Seattle. It's all rumors," Griffey said Thursday after finishing his round at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in California.

Yet there are signs this seemingly inevitable final fling between a fading slugger and the team that made him a superstar beginning as a teen may be getting closer to reality.

Griffey's agent, Brian Goldberg told The Associated Press in an e-mail he and the Mariners have talked recently. And multiple reports earlier Thursday said those talks had intensified in recent days.

The 39-year-old slugger is credited with helping save baseball in Seattle with majestic home runs, wall-scaling catches and magnetic charisma while playing his first 11 seasons there through 1999.

After the White Sox declined the $16.5 million option on Giffey's contract, a return to Seattle for a fraction of the price seemed possible.

In December, Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik said he had preliminary talks with Goldberg about possibly bringing back Griffey, who is fifth all-time with 611 home runs in 20 seasons. Recently, Zduriencik has been more coy about Griffey.

Thursday evening, he was silent. At the spring training camp for the Mariners, Zduriencik said through a team spokesman he would not comment on Griffey, or any unsigned free agents.

Griffey said he was in the dark on where the talks now stand.

"I really don't even know. My agent is handling," he said moments after stepping off the Poppy Hills course.

When asked if he still wants to play despite knee surgery last October, Griffey said: "As long as it's still fun, I want to keep playing."

For now, he is expected to remain at Pebble Beach until his team ends play in the pro-am Saturday or Sunday.

Goldberg, in an e-mail Thursday evening, said: "There is nothing specific to report. The Mariners and I have had discussions but there is nothing definite."