Twins great Harmon Killebrew dies

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Source: Minneapolis StarTribune

Harmon Clayton Killebrew, an iconic Minnesota Twin known for his prodigious home runs and humble demeanor, passed away Tuesday morning at his Scottsdale, Ariz., home at the age of 74 after a nearly five-month battle with esophageal cancer.

Killebrew was the face of the Twins franchise for 14 seasons after the franchise moved to Minnesota from Washington, D.C. before the 1961 season. He is 11th on the all-time major league home run list with 573, of which 475 were hit wearing a Twins uniform. He has the eight highest single-season totals in Twins' history. And he became the team's first MVP in 1969 and its first Hall of Fame inductee in 1984.

Killebrew became so popular that a root beer was named after him. And his home runs were such a drawing crowd that then-owner Calvin Griffith made the slugger the team's first $100,000 player in 1971.
....

Killebrew was diagnosed with the cancer during the last week of December, 2010, and vowed to do all he could to fight the disease. He made enough progress with chemotherapy and radiation treatments that he was allowed to visit camp in mid-March.

Read more: http://www.startribune.com/sports/twins/122004519.html

[Drale]

1. We've lost a legend today my friends.

I did not realize he was that far gone when he checked himself into Hospice

[Brickbat]

12. "Hospice" generally means no more than a couple of weeks are left.

[kestrel91316]

15. The hospice people provided care for my mom in the assisted living place

for her last, oh, 12-18 months. Seriously. She wouldn't die. But then she was only 75 and other than dementia in fairly good health.

Depends on what you have. Cancer isn't always a fast killer either.

[Drale]

16. Yeah but its been like 3 or 4 days since he went in.

[Drale]

17. Double Post

[joeybee12]

2. Very sad...RIP

[bigwillq]

3. RIP

:(

[Angry Dragon]

4. I can remember going out to the old Met stadium

and watching Killebrew and Allison

[Zorra]

5. RIP, Killer. nt

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

6. That's sad.

He was a local hero, very well-loved.

[flakey_foont]

7. ah, sad

Rest In Peace

I remember growing up, he seemed to lead the AL in Home Runs every single year - a
great player.

[DrDan]

8. oh no . . . . . RIP

[sufrommich]

9. Very sad. One of the greats. RIP. nt

[dhill926]

10. RIP.......

a glass shall be raised........

[Faygo Kid]

11. Tigers fan here, but Killer was one of my all-time favorite players.

Great player, loved to watch him. Al Kaline was my hero, but I was a big Killebrew fan, too.

Another Boomer icon leaves us.

[Brickbat]

13. RIP, Killer -- he was one of he good ones.

[rsdsharp]

14. The very first major league game I saw in person

was July 13, 1963 -- a knothole game at the old Met stadium with the Twins taking on the Red Sox. We walked in through the left center field gate while the Twins were taking batting practice. The center field fence was 412 feet from home plate with the black batting background about 20 feet high sat several feet behind the fence. Behind that was a concession area. No sooner had we walked in than a ball cleared the background and went bounding through the concession stands. It had to have gone 450 feet, and Killebrew hit it. That was my introduction to the big leagues. I still can see that ball nearly 50 years later.

My dad and I went up into the left field bleachers (still wood planks in those days with no upper deck out there), and Killebrew soon deposited one in a popcorn vendor's basket. That set off a shower of popcorn and a scramble for the ball. The vendor got it, and sold it for a dollar to try and offset his losses.

The left fielders that day, no more than 75 feet from where we sat, were Harmon Killebrew and Carl Yaztremski. Two hall of famers with who would hit more than 1000 home runs between them. Oh yeah, the Twins won 6-4, with Harmon hitting a home run.

The Twins had great players in the 1960s -- Allison, Battey, Pasqual, Oliva, Versailles, Carew, Kaat, and others, but Killebrew was the face and the heart of the franchise.

Rest in Peace Mr. Killebrew.

[Gemini Cat]

18. One of the greats.

RIP

[jwirr]

19. One of my favorite players. I got to see at least one of those home

runs when I was at a game.

[libodem]

20. Sorry to hear this

He was from Idaho. I was great friends with his niece, Leah, who preceded
him in death. Her daughter's name is Harmony. RIP.

[wilt the stilt]

21. no roids 573

he was great

[onenote]

23. Still in the top ten if you take out the juicers.

[onenote]

22. RIP Killer.

As a young fan of the Washington Senators he was one of my first baseball heroes.

[Odin2005]

24. OH NO!!!

:cry:

[murielm99]

25. I was never a Twins fan, but many of my

Minnesota relatives were. I knew all about him from my cousins and uncles. I saw him play a few times, too.

One of the great ones is gone.

[Loge23]

26. All-time fave, the good "Killer"

For this kid in NYC in the early 60's - a Met fan - The Killer was larger than life.
His BB card was treasured and his identity borrowed on the sandlots and stickball courts.
He was a like a BB-playing Paul Bunyan - out of the wild North; Minnesota might as well been the moon.

Cancer, you are a coward.

[Blue_Tires]

27. r.i.p. Killer

[eleny]

28. Rest in peace slugger

[Thor_MN]

29. There were flowers by his statue at the field last Saturday.

Twins lost to Toronto.

It was raining.

[Javaman]

30. Dang. :( I wasn't a Twins fan, but Killebrew was a damn fine athlete.

Rest in peace.

[Vidar]

31. A great hitter and a good man. RIP.

[geardaddy]

32. He was every kids hero

growing up in my neighborhood in 60s/70s Minneapolis.

RIP Killer.

[tabasco]

33. He was great back when baseball was great.

I was more of a national league fan but I knew Killebrew was one of the greats.