All Time Good Guy & Baseball Legend Harmon Killebrew Passes Away

[Hostile]

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=6559023

MINNEAPOLIS -- Harmon Killebrew, the Minnesota Twins (http://espn.go.com/mlb/team/_/name/min/minnesota-twins) slugger known for his tape-measure home runs, has died at his home in Scottsdale, Ariz., after battling esophageal cancer. He was 74.


The team said Killebrew died peacefully Tuesday morning with his wife, Nita, and their family at his side.


He had announced in December that he had been diagnosed with cancer. Last week, Killebrew announced that doctors had deemed his cancer incurable and he would no longer fight the "awful disease."

[Yakuza Rich]

This sucks.




YR

[Yeagermeister]

RIP Mr. Killebrew :(

[ABQCOWBOY]

Well, this is a shame. I have never been a Twins fan but Killebrew, from all accounts, seemed to be a heck of a guy. I once read a story about Killebrew and a tour he was on in Japan, related by another baseball fan.

The story goes that a fan was in Japan traveling home and there was an old guy in line ahead of he and his wife. Well, the two got to talking and the old gentleman, after a time, introduced himself as Harmon Killebrew. The younger gentleman immediately knew who he was and shouted out, "Harmon Killebrew 572 HRs!". Killebrew corrected the young man and said, "Actually 573 but how in the world did you know that?" The younger fan said to him, my brother and I collected cards and we had yours. As it turns out, Killebrew was touring Japan with a few other HOFers and he introduced the fan to Willie Mays, Whitey Ford, Duke Snider, Willie McCovey and a few others I guess. He signed a baseball for the fan along with the other's and that was the end of the story. I thought it was a good story though. I don't know if it's true or not. Would like to think it was.

Killebrew is generally credited with the hardest baseball shot every hit. It is, of course, debatable but he once hit a line shot off the second deck facade. According to accounts, it came back, hit the middle of center field and rolled to second base.

It's a shame he has passed.

RIP Harmon Killebrew.

[CowboyDan]

Sad news. I loved to watch him and the other greats on reruns of Home Run Derby. (which, by the way, they really should bring back with todays players)

[Dash28]

RIP Harmon Killebrew.

He was a great one.

[peplaw06]

There was a story I saw the other day about whether he was the model for the MLB logo, like Jerry West is for the NBA's logo. Pretty interesting.

RIP.

[CowboyDan]

Sad news. I loved to watch him and the other greats on reruns of Home Run Derby. (which, by the way, they really should bring back with todays players)

Thought you guys might enjoy watching this......

EITwKY0n1w4&feature=related

[Hostile]

I once heard a story about him speaking to a group of young people. A young man asked him what the largest fine he had ever paid was. He said that he had never paid a fine in his career. The man who set this session up with was not sure the young people got the message. So he stood up and put his arm around Harmon and asked another question.

"What time are players required to arrive at the stadium for a 6 o'clock game?"

"4:30."

"When do you arrive?"

"2:00."

Legend has it he honed his home run skills hitting potatoes with a broom stick.