[ThePundit]

Just awful. He was one hell of a player. He always came up big in the big game.

According to Tony Oliva, Puckett got really heavy. We'll never know if Kirby had taken better care of himself, if it would have changed anything. Hopefully, this may serve as a wake up call to some.

[xdavidwattsx]

Originally Posted by ThePundit

Just awful. He was one hell of a player. He always came up big in the big game.

According to Tony Oliva, Puckett got really heavy. We'll never know if Kirby had taken better care of himself, if it would have changed anything. Hopefully, this may serve as a wake up call to some.

Amen. I'd hate to think of him giving up as a contributer to his passing.

[voodoodoodoo]

RIP Kirby, he was a great player and so fun to watch. Regrettable to hear about the problems he had after his playing career. The eye problems may have made him think it wasn't worth trying to maintain his health....

[Wizard of Os]

RIP, Kirby, one of the all-time great Minnesota Twins and one of my all-time favorites...

[Wizard of Os]

Perhaps this isn't the proper forum in which to discuss this, but on the other hand it may be perfect.

Naturally, upon hearing the news of Kirby's passing, i went to various news/sports news website. On espn.com, i was quite distressed to find, in addition to the requisite bio and highlights, an actual transcript of the 911 call made on Kirby's behalf after the stroke. (No, i won't link to it here.)

Amid all the empty talk of respect and fond remembrance, here's electronic voyeurism at its worst, showing that respect and remembrance mean nothing next to the spectacle. It is shameful at best and rubbernecking at worst. This is just as bad as all the hoohah a couple of years ago about Teddy Ballgame and his cryogenically frozen head.

Do you think Kirby would have wanted this to be read all over the world? Would you?

I'm not going to ask anyone to boycott espn.com (heck, i can't), but i implore you not to click on anything related to this transcipt on this site or any other that runs such ambulance-chasing prose. Don't allow yourself to register another hit next to this crap. Read Bat Girl. Read Domed Dreams. Heck, read anything written by fans and sports lovers, rather than sensationalists and would-be paparazzi.

Thanks for listening; i'll put down the bullhorn now.

With Sadness,

Os.

[ThePundit]

By the way, Welcome to Go Teams Go - Voo Doo.

Regarding Puckett, This is a case where a guy didn't have Hall of Famer career numbers but I totally agree he should be in the Hall of Fame.

I always thought the Hall of Fame in any sport, should be for the "Great Player." That's why although a lot of people here disagree with me, I don't think guys like Michael Irvin, Jerome Bettis, and Art Monk should be Hall of Famers in football. They were wonderful players but not "great."

When Puckett, got into the Hall of Fame, a lot of people, especially here in NY, went crazy because Don Mattingly had similar career numbers to Puckett but didn't get into the Hall of Fame.

Now I'm a Yankee fan and for 5 years, Mattingly was the best player in the game but I never thought he should get into the Hall.

However there was never a question in my mind that Puckett should have got in. Seeeing Puckett's big game performances, personality and leadership ability, I was surprised that his numbers weren't "Hall of Fame" caliber.

That's why numbers can be so deceiving. If Kenny Rogers played 20 years in Texas in meaningless games, he might put up Hall of Fame Numbers (Like Don Sutton did - who was a very good pitcher but no way is he a Hall of Famer). But when Rogers got into big games, he spit the bit.

Was Mattingly victimized being on bad teams while Puckett was on good teams? Definitely. If Mattingly had won the World Series for his team the way Puckett did for his team, then it would probably change everything. Or if he had another couple of good years, then I would think differently. But he didn't, so as great as Mattingly was for those 5 years, I think he just falls short.

I'm glad Kirby got into the Hall even though is compiled stats are deceivingly low. It was the right call.

[anrobins]

Puckett was one of my childhood heroes. I just have to thank my parents for taking me to a game when we were traveling through Minnesota to see him play. His passing is another adulthood reality check for me and makes me think back to my childhood.

[Calder]

Mattingly was a guy who had sustained excellence for half a decade, and then the bottom fell out. The bottom never fell out in Puckett’s case, he was just taken away from the game because of a freak eye condition that cost him time. Puckett didn’t just get into the Hall of Fame either because of his leadership and big-game heroics. His numbers were solid year after year. Don Mattingly’s last six year were very average. He only played in 102 games in ’90, Had 9 HR and 68 RBI in 152 games in ’91, 14 HR and 86 RBI in ’92, and 17 and 86 in ’93. In limited games in ’94 and ’95, Mattingly had a combined 13 HR and 100 RBI. The injuries really brought his career down to a different level. Puckett had over 200 hits four times, batted at least .314 nine times, and had at least 96 RBI in six of his twelve seasons. His career fielding percentage was an incredible .989. Puckett’s postseason record speaks for itself. Bottom line is, Kirby was still in his prime when he was forced out of the game, while Mattingly had long been past his. That’s comparing apples and oranges in my view, though I am not suggesting you are.

[CRMartin]

When I learned of Kirby Puckett's death, it was a surreal moment. I had to stop and ask myself why? Not why did he die, but why did it seem not right. It wasn't that I was a Twins fan, because I'm not. I didn't grow up watching every spectacular Kirby moment, although his World Series outing still shines in my mind. I don't even think it was because a sports hero dies young, of which we have had far too many.

No, I think it was more of the man himself that saddened me. He overcame alot, played hard, and earned his trip to Coopers town. He overcame personal tragedies in his post baseball life and was headed to the altar again this summer. I think of his ever-present smile and the fact he'll smile no more. I think of his children, who will never hug their father again. I think of the man, who gave his all for his sport and his fans, yet slid into the homestretch way too early.

God bless you Kirby.

[ThePundit]

Calder:I agree with you. My only point was simply that many Yankee fans see that Puckett's numbers and Mattingly's numbers are almost identical and they think if Puckett gets in Mattingly does too. And my point was you can't just look at the numbers. Otherwise robots could vote.

Wizard: You are 100% on the nose. It's disgusting and unnecessary that the 911 call be made public. I like you, will not listen to it and I hope nobody else does.

And I just heard Dana Reeve passed away at 44. Although, she has nothing to do with sports, it's just as awful. She seemed like a great person.
Puts things in persective, doesn't it?

[Wizard of Os]

Interesting comparison with Don Mattingly...i'll tell you what gets me about Mattingly (another favorite of mine) not making the Hall of Fame: His constant doppelganger in the batting race, Wade Boggs, will actually receive serious consideration for Cooperstown while Don has already been essentially laughed off.

Mattingly was clutch, while Boggs went for 3000 hits, none of them in the clutch. If the Red Sox needed Wade to come through with just a hit in the ninth, they might as well have pinch hit for him. But hey, if you needed a little dribbler up the middle with no one on and two outs in August against the Brewers when holding a nine-run lead, hey, Boggs was your man.

And just after Mattingly leaves, Boggs get to play with the Yankees in the World Series. Lame.

O, and Mattingly is the answer to another interesting trivia question: Who played the most games in a Yankee uniform without playing in the 'Series?

By the way, Puckett blew them both away. Few could really dominate a game offensively and defensively like Kirby.

[Allworld]

It is a sad day here in Minnesota. It was also his birthday this thursday or next tuesday. One of the two. I have been a Twins fan since i was a kid. I have had season tickets for the last 3 years. It sucks to loose a Minnesota hero like Kirby.

[GigEmAgs]

Originally Posted by Allworld

It is a sad day here in Minnesota. It was also his birthday this thursday or next tuesday. One of the two. I have been a Twins fan since i was a kid. I have had season tickets for the last 3 years. It sucks to loose a Minnesota hero like Kirby.

I'm not a Minnesotan, but I feel the same as you about Puckett. It's a heck of a note when you see someone who did so well so consistently, who was a so good for the game (not just good AT it), leave this world so young. Good Lord, he was just four years older than I am this year, and it seems like I've heard about him all my life. I know it sounds silly, but his baseball cards are always among the ones I looked for first, back when I collected seriously.

Dang it. The act he died so young, barely into retirement (enforced though it was), teally ticks me off. Same thing happened to my favorite college prof. Makes you wanna cry "Foul." Hope they seriously consider him for the HOF.

[Calder]

Originally Posted by ThePundit

Calder:I agree with you. My only point was simply that many Yankee fans see that Puckett's numbers and Mattingly's numbers are almost identical and they think if Puckett gets in Mattingly does too. And my point was you can't just look at the numbers. Otherwise robots could vote.

Yeah, I knew what you were getting at Pundit, and I wasn’t indicting you. You know, there are always these debates about whether this guy is a Hall-of-Famer, or that guy is a Hall-of-Famer. I actually enjoy the debates, but I think one should look at a guy’s career and say, “That guy’s a Hall of Famer” with no questions asked. There’s no question that Puckett was, but when we grind our teeth about who’s in or out, the chances are the debated player doesn’t belong. Like that one congressman said, I can’t explain to you what pornography is, but I’ll know it when I see it. I think that should be the same standard for a Hall of Famer. You’ll know a guy is in just by looking at him and his resume.

[legend]

The fact that Puckett had glaucoma could mean he was also a diabetic, making him susceptible to strokes. He put on alot of weight, which is also a bad sign. If his death does nothing else, it should provide a wake up call to those of us who have a tendency to ignore serious issues until it is too late, such as diabetes.
Puckett would have made the Hall if his career were not shortened, so I have no problem with him being in. Mattingly belongs in it as well, he was one of the top five players of the 80s.