Growing up in the late 80's in Minnesota, I (Orin) remember a lot of MN Twins baseball, especially the '87 and '91 championships. Kirby Pucket, who just passed away, was a big part of those teams.We might all remember the stadium announcer introducing him as Kirbeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Pucket! And the exciting ends (and those leaping catches at the wall) to those world series games (in '87, against Shannon's STL Cardinals).
He may not have been off-the-field the best role model at times, but still, as an icon of my youth, I thought he deserved a mention here.
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I second that! Even though Kirby was partly responsible for the Cardinals loss in the 1987 World Series, he was still a lot of fun to watch.
ReplyDeleteI also remember that (for some reason) my sister would use his name when she would sing part of a Don Ho song she learned from my dad. Instead of singing "Tiny Bubbles in the wine...", she would sing "Kirby Puckett in the wine". I don't know why ,but it still makes me laugh when I think about it.
Shannon
Ricky,
ReplyDeleteYour statement about all resulting in championships depends on which "Stevie Y" moment you pick. There are so many! The most popular (or heartbreaking one, depending on your frame of reference)is the 3OT winner from near the Blue Line in the Conference semis in '96. Unfortuately, we lost to Colorado in the next round that year, starting what is now the most exicitng rivalry in hockey (You remember, that game they play on ice?)
As a loyal Detroiter, I will remember Kirby knifing us in the '87 ALCS, which was the last time my beloved Tigers made the post-season. That year, we traded with Atlanta to get Doyle Alexander for the stretch run (who, by the way, was 10-1 for Detroit that year and could have won the Cy Young had he not split his time between the leagues). For him, Detroit gave up a AA proscpect by the name of John Smoltz (sound familiar). Not that I'm bitter...
At least Kirby did the honest thing and paid Atlanta back in '91 (with the help of Jack "10-inning" Morris, a former Tiger.)
Kirby was always classy on the field, even as he ripped out your heart. I certainly hope that is his legacy, and not what happened off the field.
Dave