As the parent of a collegiate baseball player who grew up watching the MN Twins & playing baseball in the Twin Cities area, I have to say something about the legacy of Kirby Puckett.
As a skinny little 6-yr-old with a wispy crewcut, my son met Kirby Puckett and watched as Kirby signed the baseball that my son had just thrown from the mound in the Metrodome as the first pitch to start a MN Twins game. To our shock, he won that privilege in a drawing, open to kids & adults alike, after predicting he’d win that particular prize. My son never let go of the thrill of playing baseball and being on the mound and is still pitching today—and what he learned from Kirby Puckett is indescribable. Athletes are not to be confused with heros--but Puckett was different.
I’d like to think that my son learned from his parents to work his tail off and give 100% every time he goes on the baseball field. In reality, I think he learned it from Kirby Puckett. He watched & learned as Puckett gave everything he had every time he went on the field becoming a 10-time All Star, a 6-time Gold Glover, and a Hall of Famer, without ever being accused of being a prima donna. He watched as Puckett shunned opportunities to go elsewhere for more money because he liked Minnesota and the Twins. He watched as Puckett donated untold hours attending fundraising events, visiting with ill and less fortunate fans, and even forming his own annual charity event. He watched as Kirby always displayed a happy, friendly, encouraging, compassionate, selfless and hard-working demeanor.
There’s no question that Kirby Puckett was a role model for boys and girls growing up in Minnesota in the late 1980s and 1990’s, a role model who transcended race. Whenever he made a personal appearance there was always a huge crowd of children and adults waiting to meet him or have a baseball signed, which he always did gladly. When glaucoma cut short his career, he was gracious and grateful for his opportunities in baseball and never displayed any self-pity. He actually tried to comfort others who felt they had lost one of baseball’s greatest players. Whatever happened after that should not diminish what he did for the game of baseball, and in particular for a generation of children in Minnesota.
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