RIP Harmon Killebrew

Hit more homers than Mickey Mantle. RIP, Killer.

 

here's a link:

http://www.foxsportsnorth.com/05/17/11/Molitor-Morris-and-Hrbek-remember-their-/landing_twins.html?blockID=524393&feedID=3697

 

Oliva lives in the same house as when he was playing. About ten minutes from where Metropolitan Stadium was.

 

Wow. Didn't know that.

 

Now, that puts things in some perspective. Good stat.

 

Kent Hrbek isn't the only Cities native at today's presser. Jack Morris and Paul Molitor are both St. Paul natives, in fact, Molitor went to Cretin High School, same as Joe Mauer, while Morris went to nearby Highland Park.

I was listening to the presser on the radio and hearing Morris - Morris of all people! - breaking up turned it very dusty in my office.

I'm watching the Twins pregame right now and it's very dusty.

I confess, I've been crushed ever since I heard the news this morning.

 

I saw Killebrew play in 1962, at Cleveland; I was seven years old. Just checked the box score on Baseball Reference, he went 1-for-5. Jim Kaat won for the Twins, Gary Bell lost for the Indians, and only about 8900 paid to see it.

 

Target Field:

 

Another good stat:

Babe Ruth still has the most career home runs in the American League (708). When he retired, Killebrew was No. 2 on that list. In the last four decades, only one player has passed him: A-Rod.

 

Did it take him four tries to get in the Hall? Am I reading that right? I haven't ran and checked, but was there a massive backlog on the writers ballot during those years?

 

Yeah, he was up against Bob Gibson and Juan Marichal his first year, Hank Aaron and Frank Robinson the year after that, then Brooks Robinson.

Killebrew only got about 60 percent of the vote on the first ballot. I'm guessing there were some old-school writers who scoffed at his low career batting average and that's why it took so long.

Here's the vote breakdown by year:

1981
Player.................Year on ballot...............Pct.
Bob Gibson................1st........................80.0 (elected)
Don Drysdale..............7th.......................60.6
Gil Hodges.................13th......................60.1
Harmon Killebrew.........1st.......................59.6
Hoyt Wilhelm...............4th......................59.4
Juan Marichal..............1st.......................58.1

1982
Player.................Year on ballot...............Pct.
Hank Aaron.................1st......................97.8 (elected)
Frank Robinson............1st......................89.2 (elected)
Juan Marichal..............2nd.....................73.5
Harmon Killebrew..........2nd.....................59.1
Hoyt Wilhelm...............5th......................56.9
Don Drysdale...............8th......................56.9

1983
Player.................Year on ballot...............Pct.
Brooks Robinson............1st.....................92.0 (elected)
Juan Marichal................3rd.....................83.7 (elected)
Harmon Killebrew...........3rd......................73.9
Luis Aparicio.................5th......................67.4
Hoyt Wilhelm.................6th......................65.0

1984
Player.................Year on ballot...............Pct.
Luis Aparicio.................6th....................84.6 (elected)
Harmon Killebrew............4th....................83.1 (elected)
Don Drysdale.................10th..................78.4 (elected)
Hoyt Wilhelm..................7th...................72.4 (elected the following year)

Lots of typical randomness there, like Killebrew getting more votes than Marichal the first year, but Marichal going into the Hall a year before Killebrew did. But Gil Hodges was the only guy who ever got more Hall of Fame votes than Killebrew who is not in, so I guess the voting was more-or-less fair.

 

Thanks, as soon as I typed...I figured Aaron had be one of the guys ahead of him and likely Gibson.

Very fascinating stuff.