Honestly, I can't really pick out anyone else that really can describe my childhood other than Kirby Puckett.
Growing up in Minnesota, he was the guy. He was the guy who led the small market Twins to two World Series titles and gave everyone pride to say they were from Minnesota in the days when baseball truly meant something.
He was the guy who gave courage to a young kid who was struggling with the death of his father in early 1991 and went out and made that kids dream happen when he took the team on his back in Game 6 of the 1991 World Series where he homered in 11th inning to send the Twins to a Game 7 and eventually lead them to the title.
He was the guy who signed my baseball card earlier that season when my Mom took me to a Twins game at Tigers stadium in the summer of 1991:
I still remember standing by the visitors dugout too shy to go up and make my way through the hundreds of kids to get Kirby to sign my 1988 Donruss card.
I can remember my mom trying to push me over there so I could get it, like a mother bird does when she tries to get her babies to fly from the nest for the first time in their lives.
Then, like an angel coming to my rescue, a nice kid who was probably in his late teens reached out and asked me from the over the huge crowd Do you want me to get him to sign it for you?
I immediately gave him my card and he reached over the pile of kids and got Puckett to sign it right there. I still have that card to this day and its one of my prized treasures and always will be.
Its hard to describe in words what that kid and in turn Kirby Puckett did for me and what it meant, and in truth theyll never know. All I can say is thank you to that kid who made a six year olds year, which had already been a terrible one, and thank you to my first hero since I had lost my father.
A true great.
Rest in Peace Kirby. Minnesota will always love you.
I put more in my blog, feel free to read it if you like.
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I'm just glad he got to be in the Hall of Fame when he was alive and was able to hear the praise from the people in Minnesota who stuck by him through his personal problems.
Couldn't have said it better myself. At least he built up his legacy before passing so he was able to enjoy the fruit of his labor and understand how much he meant to his fans.
It is truely tragic when a prominent figure only gains notoriety after their demise, so in the end at least we can be happy that Puckett was not a member of that long sad list of people.