Remembering Kirby Puckett
Posted on March 6th, 2008 – 5:15 AMBy Howard
Kirby Puckett died two years ago today. Last week, after receiving an unsolicited remembrance from frequent commenter BC Beneke, I thought it would be cool to ask folks for their Puckett memories. I know this is a long post, but this is a time to take advantage of the endlessness of the Internet.
If you have a few minutes, I think you’ll enjoy these.
Here’s what BC Beneke wrote: I am 33 years old. He came up in the summer of 1984. I was watching the game on Channel 9. This tiny little black kid with a goofy name went 4 for 4. A few years later he had a Saturday that not many could ever dream of. He single handedly beat the Milwaukee Brewers with one of the greatest hitting performances that anyone has ever had in the history of the game.
His pudgy little legs, his barrel chest, and his ever brilliant smile, and those teddy bear eyes big and wide just like the man himself. I’ve tried to go over how many times I saw him play in person. I can’t. It was well over 100 times during his 12 years. I am guessing it was closer to 1000 times that I saw him play on television. It would have been more, but after having his career cut short by Glaucoma I didn’t get that opportunity, and neither did my son.
It was the home opener of the 1987 season; I was sitting in the 7th row behind home plate with my boss, my uncle, and my minister. Bert Blyleven (who should be in the Hall of Fame) was starting against the Oakland A’s. In that game Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson hit a ball to right center field. I was so pumped; I was going to see Reggie hit a homer. I had seen so many superstars get important hits, or hit home runs, but not this time, not that night… Kirby Puckett came out of nowhere, and jumped up, and caught the ball as it went over the fence. He robbed the great Mr. October of a home run. As I said, I’ve seen him play over a 1000 times in 12 years, but that was the moment that I will never forget. They went on to win that game, and eventually they won the division, the playoffs, and the world series to bring the first major sports championship in Minnesota in the modern sports era.
They say he played the game the way it was supposed to be played. Even when he lost his sight, and had to retire, he never sulked, he never backed out… he went in, and gave his team a pep-talk. At his retirement speech he was upbeat, and positive. At the ceremony to retire his number, I was in the crowd watching. He came out, and gave a speech that they should make a movie about. At his Hall of Fame induction ceremony he was outspoken on his love of the game, and of life. The late Bob Casey announcing his name in Cooperstown: “centerfielder… number 34, KIIIIIIIIIIRRBBBBBBBBBYYYYYYYY PUCKETTTTTTT.
Like so many others here in Minnesota, Kirby Puckett wasn’t just our hero, he wasn’t just the guy that brought us two world series titles, no. In Minnesota with the way he played, and the way he treated us, he was a part of our families. He was the face of Minnesota, and now the eyes are closed, and tears are rolling down, and we’ll never see that smile again except in memories, and replay.
The irony is that they said he was too short to play. It ended up being that his career was too short, and his life was too short… He donated his organs to help others live…
The most famous line associated with him, and one of the most famous in baseball history after making a game saving catch in the top of the inning, he hit the game winning home run in game 6 of the World Series which lead to the greatest World Series game of the last 30 years….
Thank you for your amazing catches, the countless clutch hits, the ten All-Star games, 6 Gold Gloves, your 2m000+ hits, and thank you Kirby for doing it in a manner that helped me learn to love the game of baseball so very much. Thank you for everything.
The late announcer Jack Buck simply said… “…and we’ll see you tomorrow night.”
Well, as of now, tomorrow will never come again.
Brian Boothe shares: My memory of Puck is from 1999. He had been out of baseball for a long time and his weight showed it, but his sense of humor and laugh were still there. I was working as a busboy at Edina Country Club, which he was a member of, and it was a Halloween party for kids. Puck was there with his niece and a large group of kids (I’m assuming his own). I was going to Roosevelt High School in Minneapolis at the time and I played Tight End for our football team. I was walking around filling up water glasses and Puck saw me. He was sitting alone with his niece at the time and he asked, “What’s your name?” I was shocked he even noticed me, most people at the club just ignore the help. He asked if I played sports, I told him I played football and baseball. He smiled and asked what position I played in football. To understand why this is funny, you must understand I’m only 5′8 and I weighed about 155 lbs at the time. I said I played TE and Puck just started laughing and laughing. It was so loud every other table started to look at us. “You got to be kidding me, you are a tight end?” he said. I was so embarrassed, I filled up the water glasses and walked away. About 30 minutes later, he was getting ready to leave and he walked right over to me. He said, “I didn’t mean to make you feel bad, keep your head up and you’ll do great. You probably don’t remember this because you are too young, but I was once pretty small too, but I did allright, good luck kid!” He shook my hand and
left. That was the first and last time I ever met Puck and I’ll never forget that laugh.
Jason Yessak writes from Iowa: My thoughts and memories of Puckett will always be related to the time I spent with my father watching baseball. My father is no longer with me after losing his battle with cancer, but some of my most memorable moments about the Puck included my father. The smile the Puck would bring to my father’s face over the years was tremendous, something only a son could hope to share with his father. I remember attending the game when the Twins retired Puck’s number and seeing the tears in my father’s eyes. Those were tears of sadness, I also remember the two World Series championships. Those were tears of elation.
CSE remembers: I was born in 1977 and grew up in MN during the Kirby Puckett era. While playing in the backyard or the local sandlot, I think a lot of kids liked to fantasize about being Kirby. I never did. Yes, Kirby was my favorite player … but I always dreamed about being Gaetti or Gladden. That way, I could imagine being Kirby’s teammate and friend.
Matthew Novak of Arlington, Va., wrote this on his blog when Puckett died:
When I was ten years old I met a man named Kirby Puckett. An amazing athlete, he was doing the splits on the stairs which led down to the Metrodome field, where I was throwing out the first pitch. He must have seen my jaw drop, because as I passed he stuck out his hand and passed on a simple, joyful, knowing hello. “Hey kid.”
To a ten-year-old kid, baseball players are celebrities and the stars are heroes. But in the Upper Midwest, Kirby was more than a hero. He was a living legend.
In 1991, we all learned what a living legend can do. In Game 6 of the Greatest World Series Ever, on the brink of elimination, Kirby Puckett famously told his teammates to climb on his back, because that night, he would carry them.
He did.
Before that night he had been a tremendous - if unconventional - ballplayer. He put up amazing numbers, and he earned himself a spot in the Hall of Fame. And on that particular night, Kirby Puckett confirmed what every ten-year-old kid already knew: The man was special.
His heroics - both on the field and off - earned him well deserved accolades. He was both a 10-time All-Star and the Roberto Clemente Man of the Year. But it wasn’t the heroics alone that made Kirby special.
When I was ten years old, I knew that what made a great baseball player was the same thing that made a great person: heart. For those that knew him, and for those that watched him, it was his heart that made Kirby a living legend.
“I did what you’re supposed to do in life, and that’s what I tell my kids every day: Pick one or two things in your life, and put your heart into it. I gave my all to the game of baseball.”
If another player had said it, the words would sound hollow. Coming from Kirby Puckett, they’re an understatement. The man was a force of energy and excitement. He played baseball because he loved baseball. He was always keenly aware of how blessed he was to play for a living, and Puckett played every game like it could be his last. That passion was truly unique.
There are few ballplayers who can top Puckett with their on-the-field performances. There are fewer still who were able to inspire like he did. But there are none who played the game like Kirby.
When I was ten years old, my hero was a man named Kirby Puckett. He was my hero not because I wanted to play baseball as well as he did, but because he wanted to play baseball as much as I did. Kirby Puckett played baseball with the joy, the enthusiasm, the love, of a ten-year-old boy.
Kirby once said, “I’ve always tried to play the game the right way.” Kirby did not just play the game the right way, he set a whole new standard. The way he played baseball made him more than a man, it made him a living legend.
When I was ten years old I said hello to a man named Kirby Puckett. Today, when I am twenty-four years old, I say goodbye to a legend.
Topper Anton, who used to live in Bloomington, had this brush with Fame:
When I was only about 12 years old I started a bi-weekly newsletter
for my neighborhood that told little human interest pieces for all the
neighbors, but I was lucky enough through a few connections of my
parents to land an interview with my favorite Twins player ever: Rick
Aguilera.
I was taken with my Dad on a behind-the-scenes tour of the Dome, got
to see Rafael Palmeiro (yuck) take shots in the batting cage, and then
was led into the clubhouse for my interview. I was in AWE, and all of
my heroes were standing around joking, half dressed and in towels and
I was pretty embarassed as they led me over to Rick’s locker.
Of course everyone on the team was eyeing me and nudging each other as
I was led past them with my little notebook and tape recorder. One of
the guys giving me the most attention was good old Kirby, jolly as
ever and strutting around in what I could only make out as an
autographed jock strap, and I didn’t really want to look and see who
had autographed it or if my eyes were deceiving me.
When I was sat down in front of Rick and started to interview him, the
whole time in the background I could hear Kirby joking around. “Hey,
kid, don’t worry about him, why don’t you want to interview me?”
Other guys were ribbing Kirby too, saying, “Uh-oh, Kirby, looks like
your fans are going elsewhere!” and things like that.
I didn’t really think it was funny at the time, I just felt really
self-conscious. But looking back on it all now, talking to Rick and
getting teased by a mostly-naked Kirby Puckett were probably the
greatest memories of my childhood I could ever hope for.
Jesse Doughty remembers: Being born in 1980 I first came to love baseball around the time that Kirby was coming into the league. As a kid Kirby wasn’t just a baseball player, he was baseball. I can remember days when I would be playing outside and my parents would be watching a Twins game. They would holler for me everytime Kirby was coming to bat so I could run in to watch the guy I idolized. After each at bat I would run back outside and either swing my wiffle bat mimicking Kirby’s high leg kick or I would throw a ball in the air so that I could practice catching it just like him.
My most memorable moment watching Kirby is the game 6 homer off Charlie Leibrandt when I was 11. My dad and I were the only ones in our house that had been able to stay awake long enough to watch the entire game. When Kirby hit the homer my dad and I screamed so loud that we woke both my brothers and my mom. I thing that I will cherish most about Kirby though was the way he played the game. As I grew up playing baseball I tried to play the same way he did, by running out ever grounder and by always smiling. It’s still hard for me today to think about the downturn that my childhood hero has taken and I only hope that when I have kids that they have a ballplayer like Kirby to look up to.
Paul Guerrero met Kirby in Sioux Falls and, in a sweet way, his son’s life was forever changed: We met Kirby Puckett just once and that was at a Twins Caravan event in Sioux Falls… There were several hundred people there, and, as is the custom of the caravan events, an autograph session was held after the presentation. When my son (age 7) and I finally made it to him, he shook both our hands and made us feel like we were the only ones in the room. Even though the handlers were wanting to move things along, my son wanted to ask him a very important question for a 7 year old: “What’s your favorite ice cream”? He looked right at Derek and with that big Kirby smile, stated: “Black Walnut”…his favorite ice cream flavor to this day because it was Kirby’s.
Thanks, all, for sharing.
other people are here too.
57 Responses to "Remembering Kirby Puckett"
I remember in Kirby’s rookie year he was signing autographs at Daytons, Brookdale, upstairs…only a handfull of people up there, no one knew who he was, just the new guy for the Twins…Many years later one of our cherished memories and artifacts, a 8×10 glossy signed Kirby Pucket pic for our 18 month old son,who is now 25.
Like many, my favorite memory of Kirby was game 6 of the ‘91 World Series. It was my favorite memory because my house burned down early in the morning the day of game 6, and the game was the lone bright spot that day. Watching him rob Ron Gant and then hit the home run to send them to game 7 lifted my spirits unlike nothing else could have. Thanks Kirby!!
My wife and I have been singing for children in the Midwest for almost 25 years as The Flyers. I saw Kirby play his rookie year and I fell in love with the way he played the game and I knew he was going to be a star.
I think it was John Gordon who once asked Kirby about his great success as a batter, and Kirby just smiled and said: ‘I just swing the bat, baby.’ A couple years later I wrote a song for him called (Don’t you know?) ‘Swing the bat, baby’ and we began singing it everywhere we went, libraries, schools, parks, fairs pre-schools.
Here is my little ode to Kirby, one of the great baseball heroes–
Swing the bat, baby
Swing the bat baby
Swing that bat and swing it sweet and low
Swing the bat baby
Swing the bat baby
Swing that bat and swing it sweet and low.
1-2-3
Who can this batter be?
4 5 6 7 8
Step up to the plate and…
Swing the bat baby
Swing the bat baby
Swing that bat and swing it sweet and low.
If anyone would like an mp3 copy of the song, email me at flyersmusic@gmail.com and I’ll send one to you.
My favorite memory was also game 6 of the 91 series. I was 10 years old on a camping trip while in Cub Scouts. There were about 15 of us, huddled around one of them 4 inch black and white TVs that can plug into a cigarette lighter. The catch and the hit that night were truly unforgettable. Kirby was the one who really made me “love” the game for what it is.
Puck was the best we’ve ever had, and we’ve had some great ballplayers. He not only was a great hitter, fielder, but he was the man in the clubhouse that everyone looked up to lived off his inspirations.
Kirby, you were with me from the start.
I remember my first Twins game. It was a rainy day. I was 8 years old and bored to death. I couldn’t find anything to do. So I turned my little 8″ black and White TV on and the only channel that came in clearly was the channel the Twins game was on. Up to that point I hated baseball because my father said that was what I had to do. He hated it. But as this 8 year old sat on the lovely shag carpet building space ships with his Legos, we couldn’t help but to turn his head and look at the TV. It was just magnetic to him. Hearing the broadcasters talk about this guy named Kirby. It’s all they could talk about. I really didn’t understand the game much at that point. For example, I couldn’t figure out how the catcher always had the ball even after the batter fouled it into the stands. But it was something about this guy named Kirby that lured me back to the game over and over. It turns out that that was Kirby’s first game which he had 4 hits. And we’ve never parted since. The tears came rushing ten years ago, July 12th has been always a black day for me. It forced me to grow up. Kirby and the Twins where a pillar of my childhood. I didn’t have much of a father and as I grew older I adopted Kirby’s way of life vary much. Work hard, believe in yourself, being caring to others around you. Kirby filled a void in my life. I’ll never forget what he means to me. I’ll never forget standing in the field in Cooperstown with 2 shirts on and the sweat pouring down my back. My brother laying on the ground because his knees hurt from standing to much. I never forget the 25,000 other Kirby fans around me.
I thank you Kirby, for adding to my life.
I can’t wait to watch Heaven’s Centerfielder one day.
Chris Lilyerd
I remember when Kirby lost sight in his eye. But Kirby did not complain. He did not ask why me. Instead his thoughts were with the family of Rod Carew. At the time his daughter was extremely ill. Unfortunately she lost the battle. Kirby put exverything in perspective. He had a great career and had no regrets. He wore on his cap a 29 to show where his concern really was. Some people only remember the imperfections in the news towards the end of his life. I prefer to remember this and remember how he could make this gesture and really show a lot of class. Even when he was suffering his own setbacks, he knew in the grand scheme of things there were bigger problems than the end of his playing career.
My favorite Kirby Puckett moment involves the effect he could have on other players. The setting was 1988, it was the first time that Detroit played in the Metrodome after being knocked out of the playoffs by the Twins the previous year. Jack Morris was pitching, and his first pitch was a high fastball that Kirby swung at and missed. Like good pitchers do, Morris threw a second, higher fastball, which Kirby also swung at and missed. Fastball number three came in at approximately the height of Kirby’s nose. he swung and lined a double off the baggy in right field.
After the ball came back into the infield and was thrown to Morris, he stepped off the mound and turned to Kirby, his arms spread out as if to say “What the heck?’. Kirby just stood on second base and smiled at him. Many major league hitters might have swung at that pitch, almost none of them would have actually hit it.
When thinking of Puck i can’t stay with it to long. As all the wonderful thoughts, overcome me , i get to emotional. For he was and always will be my baseball hero. Thanks for all you did Puck.
From living and working in Minneapolis, I was fortunate enough to bump into Kirby several times, both after his career was cut short. Once was at Murray’s, where he was entertaining a large entourage at lunch one day. I didn’t see anybody else go up and ask for an autograph, so I figured it would be uncool to interrupt his lunch and social engagement.
Someone mentioned here Kirby’s amazing 6-for-6 performance against the Brewers in Milwaukee. I was at the next game, at the dome, where he got two more hits and thus (I believe) tying the record for consecutive hits. He would have broken the record in his next at-bat, but for a circus catch of a line shot in the outfield…a Puckett-esque defensive gem against the man himself.
As for The Home Run…the night of Game 6 in 1991, I was playing in a wedding band in Shoreview. One of the other trombone players had brought a portable TV and had it stuffed underneath his music stand. The reception on the set was awful, but we were glued to that screen…we played most of the songs that night from memory because we weren’t looking at the sheet music while we played - we were craning to catch glimpses of the game! Most of the guests at the wedding reception were also glued to a TV in one of the rooms of the wedding hall, but as I recall the reception wasn’t much better on that TV.
We had finished the gig, and I remember I was actually outside, packing up my horn on the back deck of the place, all alone. I had also brought a Walkman with me, and I was listening to the WCCO broadcast of the 10th inning, as Puckett hit the game winner. Everybody talks about Jack Buck’s “and…we’ll see you tomorrow night!” But for me there is nothing that matches the excitement, astonishment and pure joy in John Gordon’s voice as he called that play. He was sincerely out of control, and it was wonderful to hear! Thanks John. Thanks Kirby.
He loved his fans. We would go after every game and sign autographs. We went so often that he knew my cute little sister by her first name. We could always count on Kirby. He was and always will be my favorite #34 Twins Player..
Another of my favorite Kirby stories is something I heard from another fan. It was 1am after game 6 of the world series… he’d hit the big homerun, and a couple that were at the game were in a grocery store, and there was Kirby pushing a cart, and buying groceries.
I wonder if anyone has ever seen Jeter, or Arod buy groceries. Heck, Kevin Garnett use to shop in my store, and I never saw him buy groceries… just video games. Kirby was the most human superstar… a true throw back, and will always have a place in my heart. Thank you Howard.
Being born on March 6, 1983 I can recall Kirby memories starting in 1987 World Series. He was a man of character and a phenomenal baseball player. I have to say Kirby was the one player that really got me excited about baseball because of his play on the field and his excitement for the game. I will never forget Kirby and on this day two years ago was one of the most depressing days as my favorite Twin of all time passed away on my birthday. But it will also allow me to never forget the man who truly enjoyed the game and put the Twins on the baseball map Thanks for the memories Kirby!
DEAR MR. KIRBY!
YOU ARE VERY MUCHED MISSED YOU WERE ONE OF MY FAV. PLAYERS AND IT HURTS TO NOT HAVE YOU HERE AS PART OF THE MN TWINS ANY MORE BUT I KNOW THAT YOU ARE LOOKING DOWN ON US AND BLESSING US WITH YOUR SPIRITS PROBABLY TRYING TO PLAY WITH ALL THE OTHER PLAYERS THAT HAVE PAST. BUT I JUST WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH FOR BEING THE MAN THAT YOU WERE. GOD BLESS YOUR FAMILY THE FRIENDS AND TO ALL THE FANS!
YOUR BODY MAY HAVE LEFT US HERE ON EARTH BUT YOUR MEMORIES WILL LIVE ON FOR EVER.
I was in a shopping mall in Dallas years ago and looked up and immediately recognized Kirby coming down the escalator towards me. He was my all time favorite sports figure and I was lucky enough to meet him and shake his hand. Kirby was a thirty million dollar player but he was gracious and willing to let a stranger walk up and have a moment that he would never forget. Thanks Kirby
All I can say about the great man that is Kirby Puckett, “And We’ll See Ya’ Tomorrow Night!”
Howard, thanks for compiling all those wonderful tributes and memories. Also, thank you to everyone in the comments for sharing your stories. Wow.
* * * * *
Not surprisingly, Game 6 is 1991 is my favorite memory of Kirby as well. Being 10 years old, I was too young to truly appreciate the 1987 W.S. win. However, 1991 was mine to fully enjoy.
My little brother and I were home alone as our parents were off at some function a few blocks away. I tried to squeeze in my before-bed shower during the Braves’ half of an inning. As I was getting ready to jump in, my brother yelled to come see what Kirby had done.
In my haste running out of the bathroom, I slipped on the floor and crash-landed in the hallway. I was in my underwear and it hurt very badly, but it didn’t matter. I got downstairs in time to see the replays of Kirby flying over the wall to make the catch. I don’t remember for sure, but I think I took the world’s fastest shower after that and very well may have skipped it altogether.
I’ll never forget that game and I’ll never forget Kirby.
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Here’s what I wrote about Kirby on my defunct blog two years ago. Feel free to grab the images for yourself if you so choose.
Kirby Puckett will go down as the very best player in sports history. He was a class act on and off the field. He was the ultimate in being a team player. Kirby I respect and miss you.
For the record, Kirby’s first major league game was not televised.
Great baseball player, terrible human being. Cheated on his wife, left his wife and kids, swore a blue streak in front of kids at the Boat Show at the Minneapolis Convention Center (personally witnessed by me), and the list goes on. I mourn his passing for his children’s sake, but Puckett was no hero.
I was a young baseball player when the Twins moved here in 1961. I have been a Twins fan the whole time and watched many a great Twins player. I enjoyed many Twins but the greatest of them all is Kirby Puckett for it was he who “brought home the bacon” and set himself apart from the others as the best of them all.
my dad worked in the retail sector for many years, doing custom car entertainment jobs for a lot of sports guys and local semi-celebrities, so I got to meet a few. my favorite though was Kirby.
one Sunday afternoon, we had to stop by my dad’s store for some reason, and when our family walked in the door there was Kirby with his kids, buying a television. we went over to them and my dad gave Kirby the usual client greeting, and we kids got to say hi to him and shake his hand, which was still a thrill for a 16 year old me. when I started working at the store a few years later, I saw him come in a couple more times, and he always recognized me as my dad’s kid, and it always meant a ton to me that he actually remembered who I was.
For better or worse, I still kick my leg up when I take a swing with a bat.
Kirby has been my favorite baseball player for as long as I can possibly remember. When there were rumors flying around about him leaving the Twins when I was in elementary school, I wrote him a letter begging him to stay. I fortunately never had to send that letter; in fact, I still have it, in my child chicken-scratch handwriting, stamped and addressed.
For all the joy you brought me as a child watching you play, and for almost single-handedly making me love baseball - Thank you, Kirby. You’re missed.
I remember game 6 of the ‘91 world series vividly. My High school marching band was privileged enough to be chosen to be the pre-game entertainment and thus we all got to see the game. There aren’t many more exciting moments available in life than watching Kirby hit that home run to send it to game 7 - the crowd went wild, and for the first time in my life I understood what it truly means to experience a collective moment of sheer joy watching sports. Thank you Kirby for one of the most memorable moments in my life.
I love watching kirby play the game. He was a brilliant ball player but that is not the only thing he seemed to be in life.
A couple of memories of Kirby…both which really personify who he was. I remember Kirby being on 2nd base and Winfield at bat….Winfield hits a screamer between short and second….and Kirby can’t quite get that famous butt out of the way quick enough….Kirby’s out, but I remember both Kirby and Winfield laughing about it. The other memory was being at game 6 of the 91 series. I was as far back in the upper deck as one could be but I still saw Kirby going back to make that astounding catch against the wall and then hitting a home run to win the game. Anyway, both great memories of someone I’ll never forget.
there is so much to talk about the puck there not enough time to tell all. alot of memories me and my family go to alot of twin games and it still hard to think he is no longer there. my kids no all about kirby i talk about him when we are at the games kirby did this kirby did that the funneist when itell them when he runs his legs are going faster then he really is thank you for your talent and good heart we love you kirby. the woods family thanks agin
I’m so glad to read what SavageGuy wrote, because he is right. Sure Kirby was a good baseball player but he was definitely NO hero to me and lacked even an ounce of integrity … he was a womanizer and cheater and lier in his personal life which trumps any wonderful thing he did in his professional life. What has our society come to when we all idolize someone like this and who isn’t held accountable for his actions? Sure it’s sad when anyone passes, but I have no tears or happy memories.
I was at game 6 in ‘91. nuff said. Single greatest inning by any player in the history of the game.
My favorite Puckett memory is the Home Run from Game 6….. I watch it about once a month and is my favorite baseball moment. I also remember how funny he was when the Twins caravan visited my high school in 1988.
I hate to be a downer here, but how did a guy who couldn’t hit a homerun his first season and was thin bulk up in later seasons and become a homerun hitter?
I was at the Dome for Kirby’s 2,000 hit. I was a guest in the Pillsbury box and was taking a picture of every pitch to Kirby. I got a perfect picture of him in the middle of his home run swing for his 2,000th hit, with the ball a blur as it is going over second base. I sent that picture to the Twins to give to Kirby and never heard back from them. Obviously I was, and am, disappointed; not in Kirby, but in the Twins. I never found out if he got the picture.
I moved from Minnesota to Orlando in the summer of 1985. Back then the Twins held spring training in Orlando. In 1986 during spring training I went to my sons school and picked him up an noon. We sat just behind the twins bench and got audographs of the players. Kirby was very accomidating to all the young fans. When we got home, my wife was not happy about me taking our son out of school to go to the game.
In fourth grade art class we were asked to make a clay sculpture of our hero, and I picked Kirby. Back then I would follow his batting average on a daily basis. It must have been the Game 6 home run where I broke a sandal because I was jumping up and down with so much jubilation in front of the television.
There are so many games and plays I remember but everytime look back, I just think of Kirby’s smile and that laugh and that really says it all about Number 34.
My favorite memory was Kirby hitting the first pitch of the game out of the park two consecutive nights against the Tigers in 1986.
My brother has a wonderful Kirby story, far better than anything of my own I could contribute. As he tells it, “I remember walking through the Twins’ clubhouse after Game 7 of the 1991 World Series with champagne from the saturated carpet soaking into my shoes, looking through a door into the trainer’s room and seeing Kirby standing on a chair in the middle of the room leading the players in singing “We Are The Champions”. Horrible singing, but a great moment.”
It’s not the games he played so much that I remember, but rather the character that he exhibited…For some reason, I started thinking about him several weeks ago, probably during the Roger Clemens hearings. Sickened by the he said, he said, concept of modern athletics, entertainment, talk of legacies, back-stabbing, and money grubbing in general.
With that being said, I’m thinking his single greatest athletic achievement and act of character, which seems to be in very short supply today, was when Kirby decided to forsake the money of the larger markets, and remain in Minnesota, thinking of the children that worshiped him and the game itself, that he loved so much. We were so lucky to have had him, if even for a only short while…..RIP Kirby, going, going, gone but not forgotten…..
Kirby was special because we saw joy on his face when he played the game. I think he truly understood how fortunate he was to be playing professional baseball. Its rare to see that today. And its also rare to see someone perform at the level he did. Thinking of game 6 gives me chills everytime.
When I was a kid I use to memorize his stats and everything about him. I still know them today just as well as I knew them back then. He just makes me smile.
He got me hooked on baseball and he made me a better player because of the way he played the game. What a treat it was to watch him play! Thanks Puck!
Tom Kelly told a story of the first time he realized he had someone special with Kirby. It was back in rookie ball. Early in spring training. They were in the clubhouse and some of Kirby’s teammates were teasing a young tall gangly pitcher. Kirby got up, walked across the room, stood between the teasers and the pitcher. He told his teasing teammates that this pitcher was his teammate and if you are going to pick on him you are going to have to go through me first. He lectured them on what it means to be on a team. TK was impressed. He saw the character then that all these posters have illuminated.
I don’t understand why grown people can get so emotionally invested in sports players. If only people cared that much about issues that actually matter.
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hero
Not to be confused with
I liked the comment that I liked Kirby not because of how he played the game but because he wanted to play it as much as me. It was nice to see someone love the game that much and play for that rather than his bank account. How many of us hit rolled up socks in the middle of winter when there was a foot of snow outside like Kirby did when he was little. As a twin Kirby always seemed like the guy still ready to hit rolled up socks in his house just to play. It was impossible not to see the joy he had of playing the game watching him hustle and attempt to give every bit he had out of his short round frame. I met Kirby twice and was short of words both times. Kirby was very gracious and humble on both occasions to a young man too excited and tongue tied to come up with much to say to him. A couple of people have commented on Kirby’s problems after baseball. A couple out of overwhelming number that have posted. Kirby’s story and the stories of others probably leads to a truth somewhere in between. But the joy Kirby brought to people with his play, charity work, and personality far outweighs his limitations as a human after the game. I would not say Kirby was perfect. It does appear he had problems coping with the early loss of something he loved so much. But I hope we all can say the same for our lives that we did much more good than harm. If only we all could effect so many people as positively. I grew up with Kirby as a hero and his play and attitude positively affected my play and attitude as I grew. They still do as I still try to play the game and live my life. His problems after the game also were lessons to me in another way. But it doesn’t change what he meant to me and a lot of other people. Who will ever forget his heroics on the field especially game 6 of the 91 series. Of course that was just one of Kirby’s many amazing performances jut happened to be on the biggest stage. I remember the guy that was so nice to me when I met him and that was everything you would hope a ball player would be.
It is not that hard to reconcile the great qualities of Kirby with the base ones… to expect that a hero has no faults, or that a villain has no redeemoing qualities, is as unrealistic as to expect that we will ourselves be either all good or all bad… never going to happen. Yes, Kirby made a lot of poor decisions, especially after baseball. And yes, Kirby thrilled and excited more people than any other sports figure of his time. The man was human. We neither forgive/ignore his errors nor trash his successes. The number of people who had positive and unforgettable personal encounters with Kirby is a wonderful measure of his legacy.
Puck, you were human and so am I. We both did things we aren’t proud of. I just hope some of my good decisions in life were as good as many of yours. You gave me a lot of joy by laying your excitement for the game out for everyone to see.
Who can forget seeing Al Newman and Kirby Puckett rolling around and bumping bellies at second base after winning the world series. Two round ball players who played hard and endeavored to have fun celebrating after winning the World Series. Thanks for the memories, you did it right, you were an inspiration. Your life was too short. Your career was too short, you had so much more to give to all of us but what you gave was more than any ball has ever given. Because you always played hard and you always had fun and you always appreciated your gifts and talents. The epitome of the American dream. Thanks. We still miss you.
P.S. Someday, I’ll tell my 3 year old son about this great ball player with this great baseball name and how he always, always, always played hard. “Play the game like he did”, I’ll tell him, you never know what you might accomplish. Just look at Kirby Puckett.
My best memory of Kirby was watching him in spring training. They’d played a long game and it was so very muggy and hot. As the other players headed for the locker room, Kirby visited with a group of kids (some in wheel chairs). He spent a long time talking to each kid, and you could see he was genuine and cared about what each one had to say. Despite his troubles later in life, he is one of our household’s all time favorite kids. My 6 year old son, who never got to see him play, has a poster of Kirby on his wall and one of his favorite stories is a book about Kirby Puckett. We miss you Kirby!
I wrote this the morning that I found out Kirby had died. I happened to come across it yesterday, and then came across this blog today……
This morning as I was walking into my house after retrieving my morning paper I learned the sad news that Kirby Puckett passed away Monday evening. I sat down in our kitchen and read an article briefly summarizing his career, his life, and his death. As I was reading, my wife was standing beside me. I wasn’t aware of the tears I was fighting back either for her or my ego’s sake. But when she left the room, I got up to make my morning coffee and spent the next couple of minutes blubbering like a baby.
As I was driving my kids to school this morning we were listening to former coaches and broadcasters reminisce about their experiences with Kirby. When they went to a commercial, I was trying to tell my kids what a popular person Kirby was in Minnesota and that there will never be another person in my lifetime that would have such a widespread following of the entire state like Kirby did. I say that I was trying, because I could hardly get part of my point across without tearing up and my voice breaking apart.
I couldn’t quite understand why I would react this way to the news of the death of a man whom I had never met. I have had several hours to reflect on this now, and it makes perfect sense to me.
Over the past couple of days – since the news of Kirby’s stroke, I have heard and read several accounts from players and fans across the country. Kirby was loved by everyone. His infectious grin and his never-quit style of play was something that was recognized and admired by everyone. Those players playing against him, the fans cheering against him – they couldn’t help but love this man.
I, and Twins fans across the Midwest, had the unbelievable privilege of watching Kirby and cheering for him playing for OUR team. We saw him when he was on one of his tears where he would hit the ball hard every time up for a week-long stretch. We saw those rare slumps that he might slip into. And whether he was red-hot, or ice-cold, his attitude was always the same. He always played his hardest. In twelve years, not once did I see him not run out a ground ball. And he ALWAYS had that smile on his face. Hot or cold you knew he was enjoying every moment he had being a major-leaguer.
I was able to witness so many of Kirby’s great moments. I was lying on the living room floor of my parent’s house, listening to the game on the radio the night in 1984 when Kirby broke into the majors with a 4-hit performance. I remember thinking, “Kirby Puckett – now there’s a great baseball name – I hope this guy makes it”. I was there, at the Dome, on an August night in 1986 when Kirby hit for the cycle (the same night Bert Blyleven got his 3,000 strikeout). I was there, in the Dome, that Sunday afternoon in September 1987, when, in the bottom of the first, Kirby hit the first of a series of back-to-back-to-back home-runs by the Twins in a game that clinched a tie for the AL West pennant. I was in the Dome on opening night 1993, when after an off-season with the possibility of Kirby signing elsewhere as a free agent; he hit his first pitch of the season out of the park. Over the years I was at the Dome to witness countless over-the-fence catches, game-winning hits and clutch home-runs. I will always remember the excitement of young kids all around me every time Bob Casey would start his incomparable introduction “Now batting for the Twins, the centerfielder, number 34, Kirbeeeeeeee Puckett”.
Most of all I will remember Game 6. I was fortunate enough to be in attendance for one of the greatest individual, single-game performances in the history of baseball. I remember the feeling of almost being lifted off of my feet by the jubilant sound as the stadium erupted when Kirby’s home-run sailed over the fence in the 11th. When the initial blast of jubilation gradually morphed into a chorus of over 50,000 people chanting “Kirby, Kirby” in unison, I remember having goose bumps so big I thought they might pop. It wasn’t until after the chants of “Kirby, Kirby” finally coaxed a curtain call out of our hero and people started filing out of the dome (as much as they didn’t want to have to leave) that I began to realize what had just happened. Kirby had just become a legend.
We stepped into the concourse of the dome and it seemed that nobody was moving. We were all just standing there and everyone was chanting, “Kirby, Kirby”. I remember my brother and me looking at each other and just shaking our heads. We finally got outside the dome, and people were standing outside looking up at the dome chanting “Kirby, Kirby”. There was screaming everywhere and occasionally you would hear people shouting “Kirbeeeeeee Puckett”. We got in our car and drove around downtown Minneapolis to savor the moment. There were people standing on street corners all over the city chanting “Kirby, Kirby”. I remember being stopped at one corner and a young man running up to our car screaming “Kirbeeeeee” and showing us a button that read “Kirby Won It”. All of this elation brought on by one man, whom none of these people had ever met, and yet was loved by them all.
How could I not cry upon hearing of the passing of this man? How could anyone who was a fan of the Twins during those years not shed a tear for the sadness of losing someone who brought them so much happiness?
I am so thankful to have been able to watch Kirby play and be a part of the collective love that Twins fans had for Kirby. There will never be another Twin quite like him. I look forward to someday being able to share this feeling with my children without a tear in my eye. But not today.
Puck was a true ambassador of goodwill for baseball, like no other.
Remember the time when Frank Thomas murdered a Frankie Rodriguez pitch for like a 500 ft HR at the Dome? And the next day Frankie was summoned early onto the empty field to see the jokster Puckett sitting and waving and laughing and yelling “Frankie!!” from the seat where that ball had landed. Must be the coolest baseball practical joke ever.
The guy had balls. Happy balls.
And didn’t he have the most hits in a season for a right handed batter since WWII in 1988, except for Joe Dimaggio? And Joe never saw a slider.
Scorese oughtta do a docu/drama about Kirby.
So, Ken, I guess everyone who went from 180 pounds in high school to 250-plus in their thirties were using steroids or HGH? Especially a kid from the projects in Chicago who found himself suddenly able to afford to eat anything on the menus at the fanciest establishments in the country? Kent Hrbek, too, I suppose. John Kruk? Tony Gwynn?
Thinking of Kirby always brings back fond childhood memories.
I was 9 years old during the 1991 World Series, and I remember my mother telling me that I could not stay up and watch game 6. To this day, I still do not let her live that down.
When they announced that Kirby was not in fact going to the Red Sox, I remember running down the street with my friend, hollering and screaming like an idiot, shouting “Kirby’s staying! Kirby’s staying!” He was ours, and he was a hero to me.
That is what being a kid was all about.
Sorry for the diversion, I got the Joe Dimaggio reference mixed up. Kirby’s 234 hits in 1988 were and still are the most by a right handed hitter, as far as I know, since Heinie Manush in 1928. Dimaggio has nothing to do with it.
And Kirby had the highest BA (.356 in 1988) for a right handed hitter in the American League for 55 years running, 1940 through 1994, (after Dimaggio’s 1939 season) ——– until Kirby’s career was ended with that beanball in 1995.
Then, within days of that event, right handed hitter Edgar Martinez went on to win the batting title (including 2 hits the last day of the season) with a .356 average which was 1/100,000th of a percent higher than Kirby’s 1988 .356 average.
So technically Kirby’s 55-year reign did not end until after his very career had ended — four days after his last plate appearance.
Maybe it was the baseball gods’ way of taking care of royalty — our right-handed prince of baseball excellence and baseball fun.
Plymouth Guy, SavegeGuy, take it somewhere else. The guy was human. He had good points and bad points, and good days and bad days, just like we all do. He had his bad points revealed to the entire world, and he had to live out his bad days in the public eye. Do you? Walk a mile in his shoes and then tell me how you feel. For every person like you guys who wants to rip him for something you saw him do or say, there must be 100 people who have good things to say about a personal interaction with him. This space is for people who want to share good memories of the things that Puckett did on the field or off of it and talk about all the joy that he gave us. If you want to crap all over that, start your own blog or whatever and talk all you want about it. Start your own “Kirby Puckett was no hero” discussion, invite all the other jerks to join in, and talk about it all you want.
Yeah it’s fair to say that Puck didn’t adjust well in his post-career.
But his career was possessed with singular full-out intensity more than anyone else I know of.
So he replaced that intensity with food and boredom.
And the beanball probably directly affected his eyesight. Who’s to say it didn’t physically hurt his brain function too?
Whatever the case, it was a stunning and complete end to that intensity and “high”. Given his unique intensity level, it was an awful psychological blow…..and a complete tragedy.
And who wants to criticize a guy who suffers such out-and-out tragedy?
Who could ever forget that laugh and Kirrrrrrrrrrrrrby Puckett!
Funny stuff. I remember listening to Kirby’s first MLB on the “Old Neighbor.” Why? Because is wasn’t on television.
I remember being excited that some kid from Visalia (I think) was called up to replace the enigmatic “Downtown” Darrell Brown in CF. I also remember being disappointed because this kid missed his first game because of travel “difficulties” and I would be unable to watch his MLB debut.
I guess this little tale somewhat invalidates those delicious tales of the contributors like fabled story-teller BC Beneke. Nice try though.
Dave in MN:
Don’t get worked up about it, partner. I, like you, read these posts to share in the joy of others; in a joy that Kirby Puckett gave us. Inevitably, there will always be one or two people who hate life, despise the happiness of others, or are simply so miserable themselves, they’ll feel the need to take a giant crap on anything meant to be positive. I’ve learned to accept that these unfortunate few are typically far worse off then the people they attempt to bad-mouth, and this is simply one method of theirs to feel better about themselves.
Morale of the story? Kirby even brings joy to those who try to smear his name! LOL … Not too bad a spin job on the naysayers, eh? 
RIP, Kirby. Gone, but never forgotten!
