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Harmon
Killebrew |
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Harmon Clayton Killebrew was born on June 29,
1936 in Payette, Idaho. Killebrew was drafted by the Washington
Senators and moved rapidly to the major leagues, making his
debut in 1954 at the age of 18. He shuttled between the majors
and minors for five years before finally getting a legitimate
shot. He made the starting lineup for good in 1959 when second
baseman Pete Runnels got spiked and Killebrew came through with
two HR. He finished the season with a league-leading 42, the
first of eight times he would top 40. Throughout his career,
Killebrew changed positions frequently. |
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He came up as a second baseman, was soon
moved to third, then to left field for a few seasons, over
to first base for a while, then back to third, back to
first, and finally off the field altogether to DH. He would
often shift between two positions in the same game. But
Killer never groused and his lack of a permanent defensive
spot never seemed to affect his power. In 1962, the second
year after the original Senators moved to Minnesota and
became the Twins, Killebrew hit a ball completely over the
left-field roof at massive Tiger Stadium. On May 2, 1964 he
was the fourth straight Twin to homer in the eleventh inning
against the Angels to tie a ML record. On June 3, 1967
against the Angels, Killebrew rifled a three-run shot six
rows into Metropolitan Stadium's upper deck in left field,
shattering two seats. The shot was estimated to have gone
530 feet. The splintered seats were painted orange and never
sold again. The next day he hit another shot to almost the
same spot, the ball pounding off the upper deck facing. The
Senators moved to Minneapolis to become the Minnesota Twins
in 1961. Killebrew was a stocky (5'11, 210 pounds) hitter
with a short, violent swing that generated tremendous power. |
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Nicknamed "Killer" for his home run hitting
ability, Killebrew became the American League's most feared
power hitter of the 1960s, belting 40 homers in a season seven
times. In 1965 he helped the Twins reach the World Series where
they lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Killebrew had his finest
season in 1969, hitting 49 home runs, driving in 140 RBI, and
winning the Most Valuable Player Award. Killebrew led the league
in home runs six times, in RBI three times, and was named to
eleven All Star teams. Despite his "Killer" nickname and his
powerful style of play, Killebrew was in fact a quiet, kind man
who was not much given to the partying lifestyle enjoyed by his
peers. |
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Injuries reduced his effectiveness in the
early 1970s, and after a one-year stint with the Kansas City
Royals he chose to retire. Killebrew hit 573 home runs in his
career (seventh best all time, as of 2003) and drove in 1,584
runs. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984; the
first Minnesota Twin to be so honored. Following his retirement,
Killebrew became a successful entrepreneur in insurance,
financial planning, and car sales. In 1990 he retired from
business to pursue endorsement and charity work, especially in
the fields of preventive and palliative health care charities
and causes. The silhouette of Harmon Killebrew swinging a bat is
the official logo of Major League Baseball. |
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