Kirby Puckett has died.

[kev211]

RIP Kirby

[rangercal]

RIP Kirby

[whitesoxmanager]

what a great ballplayer! Kirby Puckett! this sucks!

[WilliamTell]

I'm so speechless right now I don't even know what to say. His death hits me very hard, I know what it's like to lose a favorite athlete, that happened with Derrick Thomas in 2000. You grow up thinking your heroes are unstopable or inmortal, but that's not the case. I was already thinking about going to the opening game for the Twins against the A's. Now I'm really going to try to go to it and if I do, I'll go to the back of my closet and bust out my very, very old Minnesota Twins hat one more time for Kirby.

[redandwhite]

Wow...

 

Rest In Peace, Kirby Puckett.

[Felix]

This is a shame

[rventura23]

very sad, RIP Kirby

[Mplssoxfan]

Wow. I've lived in Minneapolis for a long time, so I've gotten to see a lot of Puckett. The man always hustled; it didn't matter if the playoffs were out of reach or it was the heat of the race, he never cheated the game or the fans.

 

He was a funny guy, too. He bet Bob Costas that if he was hitting .350 when Costas' kid was born, he had to name him Kirby. Costas' son is named Keith Michael Kirby Costas.

 

As for his post-career life, I would add to Rex's comments that Kirby not only had the issues of adjusting to life after baseball, but he had the last 4 or 5 seasons of his career stolen from him by a cruel twist of fate. That had to be doubly hard to deal with.

 

RIP, man.

[SoxRock05]

RIP....An excellent man...

[soxfan3530]

while i would never call myself a twins fan, i was a fan of puck. RIP Kirby. one of the greatest.

[CSF]

One of the greatest players to play this game. He will truly be missed.

 

 

Godspeed Puck.

[The Bones]

One of the first players I liked in baseball when I was a kid. RIP Kirby.

[YASNY]

On the baseball field the man was an inspirational player. RIP Puck.

[southsider2k5]

RIP Kirby and prayers to everyone suffering during this time because of their loss.

[WilliamTell]

Wow.  I've lived in Minneapolis for a long time, so I've gotten to see a lot of Puckett.  The man always hustled; it didn't matter if the playoffs were out of reach or it was the heat of the race, he never cheated the game or the fans. 

 

He was a funny guy, too.  He bet Bob Costas that if he was hitting .350 when Costas' kid was born, he had to name him Kirby.  Costas' son is named Keith Michael Kirby Costas. 

 

As for his post-career life, I would add to Rex's comments that Kirby not only had the issues of adjusting to life after baseball, but he had the last 4 or 5 seasons of his career stolen from him by a cruel twist of fate.  That had to be doubly hard to deal with.

 

RIP, man.

 

I remember watching that game against the Indians, poor Dennis Martinez hit him. I now wonder what Kirby would've been like had he played a whole career instead of his 12 years.

[Steff]

Weird..

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060307/sp_nm/...XAwBHNlYwM3NTU-

 

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The death of Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett has brought to light his true age, which even the Minnesota Twins listed incorrectly his entire career.

 

When the 10-times All-Star outfielder died on Monday in Arizona after a stroke, many fans learned for the first time that Puckett was born in 1960, making him a year older than that given by his team and elsewhere throughout his career.

 

"We had it listed as 1961," said Molly Gallatin, who coordinates publications for the Twins, including the annual media guide with detailed information on players.

 

"We probably put it down the first year and never looked at it again. I don't know why it happened; it fooled me."

 

Puckett played his entire 12-year career with the Twins, who apparently learned of his correct age after the outfielder's retirement in 1996 and reported it in announcing his death.

 

The long-running error means baseball cards throughout Puckett's career contained the wrong information.

 

Officials at the Hall of Fame say they learned the true birth date of the star, who helped the Twins to two World Series in 1987 and 1991, about three years ago.

[Dick Allen]

Weird..

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060307/sp_nm/...XAwBHNlYwM3NTU-

 

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The death of Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett has brought to light his true age, which even the    Minnesota Twins listed incorrectly his entire career.

 

When the 10-times All-Star outfielder died on Monday in Arizona after a stroke, many fans learned for the first time that Puckett was born in 1960, making him a year older than that given by his team and elsewhere throughout his career.

 

"We had it listed as 1961," said Molly Gallatin, who coordinates publications for the Twins, including the annual media guide with detailed information on players.

 

"We probably put it down the first year and never looked at it again. I don't know why it happened; it fooled me."

 

Puckett played his entire 12-year career with the Twins, who apparently learned of his correct age after the outfielder's retirement in 1996 and reported it in announcing his death.

 

The long-running error means baseball cards throughout Puckett's career contained the wrong information.

 

Officials at the Hall of Fame say they learned the true birth date of the star, who helped the Twins to two World Series in 1987 and 1991, about three years ago.

When I was 15 I played in a 19 year old league called Thoroughbreds I believe. There were usually a couple of scouts at every game, and sometimes they would ask you to fill out a card with your name, address, date of birth, etc. They would tell the 19 year olds to shave off a year of their age, so they would have a better chance of being drafted or signed. We sometimes played at Triton. I wonder if Kirby was offerred the same advice.

[Mplssoxfan]

When I was 15 I played in a 19 year old league called Thoroughbreds I believe. There were usually a couple of scouts at every game, and sometimes they would ask you to fill out a card with your name, address, date of birth, etc. They would tell the 19 year olds to shave off a year of their age, so they would have a better chance of being drafted or signed. We sometimes played at Triton. I wonder if Kirby was offerred the same advice.

 

I have no doubt he was. I was friends with a guy in College who went to a Mets tryout and took two years off his age, since he was a baby-faced guy. The reasoning is, if you can do something at the tryout, they'll ask you back for more if you're younger. If you hit the longshot odds and get invited to Spring Training, (probably longer than 5,000-1), then and only then will you have to pony up any actual proof of age, like a birth certificate. If they like you enough as a player, they might forgive you the little white lie.

[Jimbo's Drinker]

Is his image flawed based on his constant spouse abuse??

[Steff]

When I was 15 I played in a 19 year old league called Thoroughbreds I believe. There were usually a couple of scouts at every game, and sometimes they would ask you to fill out a card with your name, address, date of birth, etc. They would tell the 19 year olds to shave off a year of their age, so they would have a better chance of being drafted or signed. We sometimes played at Triton. I wonder if Kirby was offerred the same advice.

 

 

Weird cause it was never caught..

[Rex Hudler]

Is his image flawed based on his constant spouse abuse??

 

Depends on how you look at it, but as far as I know, no one knows to what degree it was done. He was never convicted of anything, so it's hard to say.

 

I think it is fair to say that he was a good man that had a very tough time after he retired. I can't imagine how difficult it would be to be a man on top of the world, at the top of your profession and loved by everyone, to having an illness take the game and your world away from you. Imagine feeling bulletproof one day and the next barely being able to see and being told your existence as you know it is gone.

 

Obviously he struggled with the real world outside of baseball. While not condoning any of his transgressions, whatever they may have been, I will personally choose to remember him in his better days, when the world loved Kirby Puckett.

[Jordan4life_2007]

Depends on how you look at it, but as far as I know, no one knows to what degree it was done.  He was never convicted of anything, so it's hard to say.

 

I think it is fair to say that he was a good man that had a very tough time after he retired.  I can't imagine how difficult it would be to be a man on top of the world, at the top of your profession and loved by everyone, to having an illness take the game and your world away from you.  Imagine feeling bulletproof one day and the next barely being able to see and being told your existence as you know it is gone. 

 

Obviously he struggled with the real world outside of baseball.  While not condoning any of his transgressions, whatever they may have been, I will personally choose to remember him in his better days, when the world loved Kirby Puckett.

 

Excellent post. A couple of the idiots on the score today (I can't remember who) were just ripping Puckett to shreds. Saying he did this and he was like that and so on. To have the sport you love just taken away from you like that would affect anyone.

[SSH2005]

http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb...t=.jsp&c_id=cws

White Sox recall Puckett fondly

Memorial service in Chicago on Wednesday

 

By Scott Merkin / MLB.com

 

TUCSON, Ariz. -- Back in 1997, a full decade after the Minnesota Twins' exciting World Series victory over St. Louis in seven games, Frank Viola III had a chance to sit and talk with one of his boyhood idols.

 

That idol, Kirby Puckett, quickly became one of Viola's friends.

 

"They had a 10-year anniversary for the championship, and I got to talk with Kirby again," said Viola, 20, now a pitcher who finished 5-2 for Bristol with a 3.84 for Bristol during his first year with the White Sox organization in 2005. Viola currently is taking part in Minor League Spring Training in Tucson.

 

"He gave me his phone number, and every couple of months he would call me up and give me tips on hitting when I was in high school," Viola added. "You don't meet many Hall of Famers who are willing to talk to high school players about hitting. He never cared who he was talking to. He just wanted to help people out."

 

Memories of Puckett were flowing throughout the White Sox facility at Kino Sports Complex on Tuesday, one day after the 45-year-old baseball legend passed away following a massive stroke Sunday. Viola's father, Frank Viola II, was Puckett's teammate from 1984-1989 and considered the barrel-chested center fielder a close friend, according to his son.

 

In fact, Viola said Tuesday morning that the only other time he had heard or witnessed his father become so emotional was when another of his close friends, golfer Payne Stewart, died in an air-travel accident. But Puckett was not someone for whom you had to be part of his inner circle in order to receive special treatment.

 

"He made you feel like you were his best friend, if you talked to him for just five minutes of your life," Viola said.

 

"Kirby would come up and introduce himself to everyone," added White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski, who started his career in the Twins system in 1995, the year that happened to be Puckett's last with Minnesota. "He would say, 'How you doing kid? I'm Kirby Puckett. Nice to meet you. Glad to have you in a Twins uniform.' For a first-ballot Hall of Famer to act like that, it was incredible."

 

When manager Ozzie Guillen first heard about the gravity of Puckett's condition Sunday, he immediately talked about living every moment, taking care of yourself and enjoying life. On Monday night, Guillen spoke of how he was in a state of shock when hearing of Puckett's death and how he had to break the news to his three sons, who all counted Puckett as one of their favorite players.

 

Guillen joked that when Oney, his middle son, was a youngster, they called him "Little Puck" because he was a bit chubby. As Guillen watched the steady stream of interviews and the numerous news reports on television concerning Puckett, sitting alongside first base coach Harold Baines prior to Tuesday's workouts, the tears started to flow.

 

"[Dave] Winfield said the right thing about Kirby in that he was the only player in the history of baseball that everyone loved," Guillen said. "A lot of players were better than him, but they didn't enjoy the game or appreciate what they did like Kirby."

 

"He was the first guy after a game, if you did something stupid, to come up and ... and rub it in and laugh about it," Pierzynski added with a smile. "He also would be the guy who said, 'I did it too.' He would play cards with you, and he was just fun."

 

Pierzynski told the story of growing up a huge Atlanta Braves fan and how Puckett broke his heart with his most memorable catch and walk-off home run in Game 6 of the 1991 World Series. Guillen eerily recalled Puckett's comments about how he was going to die before he was 50 because of heart problems that ran in his family, but quickly added that Puckett was one of the three greatest to ever play the game.

 

That assessment had very little to do with Puckett's vast ability as a hitter or a baserunner or his six career Gold Gloves. Guillen's reference was to the way Puckett played the game.

 

"You can ask every player who played with him or against him, and they all have the same answer," Guillen said. "Kirby Puckett played hard, always had a big smile and enjoyed what he did. He was a warrior. He could carry the team, and this guy could fill up a ballpark. He was the greatest ambassador in a Twins uniform and for all of baseball."

 

Comparing Puckett's importance to the Twins with Michael Jordan's importance to the Chicago Bulls is not even close to a stretch, according to Pierzynski. But Puckett also belonged to the city of Chicago, born in the Robert Taylor Homes, housing projects once located across the Dan Ryan Highway from Comiskey Park. Puckett also played baseball for Triton College in west suburban River Grove.

 

Central Unity Church, located at 8420 S. Cottage Grove in Chicago, will host a memorial service for Puckett at 6 p.m. CT on Wednesday. Pierzynski plans on attending a service for Puckett in Minneapolis on Saturday, missing the day of camp with Guillen's full blessing. Pierzynski was trying to work out a way to travel with Doug Mientkiewicz (Kansas City), Jacque Jones (Cubs) and possibly even Eddie Guardado (Seattle), all former Twins who are currently training with different teams in Arizona.

 

Viola, meanwhile, always will have the memories of the Hall of Famer who helped him improve his offense. But the young hurler believes Puckett will be remembered for far more than simply baseball.

 

"He'll be remembered for the person that he was, and then on top of that, being a great baseball player," Viola said. "I remember calling him once and telling Kirby how I was always getting jammed and what should I do.

 

"And he would say great hitters always get jammed. He always said that it wasn't about my swing, but it's about my attitude. Work hard and enjoy life. Have fun doing what you are doing, and if you don't enjoy it, you shouldn't be doing it."

[Balta1701]

Puckett wanted his organs donated. Services sunday, one at the Metrodome.

 

Before he suffered a life-ending stroke, Minnesota Twins star Kirby Puckett was happy and upbeat, still had a love for baseball, and was a strong supporter of organ donation, according to his former wife and the woman he planned to marry.

 

"I do want people to know that Kirby was a very happy man and that retirement gave him the opportunity to do things he always wanted to do," said Jodi Olson, who had planned to marry Puckett. "He was just ready to live the rest of his life."

 

Puckett, 45, died Monday after suffering a devastating stroke a day earlier.

 

His former wife, Tonya Puckett, said the Twins Hall of Famer was a believer in organ donation, and officials were evaluating whether that was possible earlier this week.

 

"I just know there are eight organs, one of which might be a match for his sister, Jackie," said Tonya Puckett, adding that Jackie, who lives outside Chicago, has kidney disease.

 

"I don't know the other organs they have [potentially] found matches for," she said. "It's just amazing. That's how my life with him was. He always made it happen, found a way to let somebody benefit; made some good out of everything, even in his death. How can you top that?"

[Baines3]

Kirby Puckett was a great one. He'll be missed.