Deadspin: kirby puckett

I Hope Someone Gently Broke The News To Josh Johnson

DAULERIO — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 18:21:58 EDT

From this week's SI Pop Culture Grid: Person I'm Dying To Interview..."Kirby Puckett. One of my idols growing up." [SI]

Kirby Puckett, Off-Off-Broadway

Leitch — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 15:30:54 EDT

When Kirby Puckett died last year, he left behind a most complicated legacy.

On one hand, he was the most popular Minnesota Twin in the team's history, heroic in the clutch, scrappy, all we love about baseball. On the other, he was a serial womanizer — as chronicled in the famous Frank Deford Sports Illustrated story — and, toward the end of his life, a complete disaster.

A new play debuting in Minnesota attempts to reconcile the two Kirbys.

1991. Game 6 of the World Series, Twins vs. Braves. Kirby Puckett's stunning walk-off homer forces the series into Game 7, setting in motion the Twins' second World Series win in five years. A gutsy dynamo from the Chicago projects, Puckett ascends to baseball's heights through hard work, determination and a deep love of the game. His career tragically cut short by glaucoma, Puckett's difficulties escalate when damaging details of his private life become public.Exploring the privileges and pitfalls of hero worship, KIRBY recaptures the spirit and complexity of this unforgettable American icon.

We like the idea of one-man, one-act plays about all our sports heroes. Would you pay to watch a man pretending to be Alex Rodriguez for two hours? Hell, we already pay to watch him do that for three.

Would Fat Kirby Be Proud? [10,000 Takes]

Remembering Kirby Puckett

Leitch — Tue, 07 Mar 2006 09:15:25 EST

As you've surely heard by now, Twins Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett died last night at the age of 45. Puckett was a player who was impossible to dislike; he played baseball the way we all imagine we would, if we had the chance. His post-retirement career was smeared by Frank Deford's famous Sports Illustrated piece, but as a player, no one was more popular than Kirby Puckett. Rest in peace, as they say.

A roundup of Kirby reaction from around the Web:

• Why Kirby was the scariest hitter in baseball at the time. [Mariners Morsels]
• Trying to keep the good and the bad of Kirby separate. Sportszilla]
• The strangeness of a guy we all grew up watching dying so young. [The FYC]
• Video of Puckett after the 1991 World Series reveals ... he was in the "2 Legit 2 Quit" video? Did we forget about this? [Minnesota Video Stories]
• Touching tribute from the great Bat-Girl. [Bat Girl]
• How big was Puckett getting? Here's a photo from just one year ago. [Woolis.com]
• The sports Wiki encourages you to weigh in. [Armchair GM]
• And every other link we might have missed. [Baseball Musings]

Kirby Puckett Suffers Stroke

mjdeadspin — Sun, 05 Mar 2006 13:55:45 EST

I've gotta bring you some sad news to bring you this afternoon. The Minnesota Twins have announced that hall of fame centerfielder Kirby Puckett has suffered a stroke and is undergoing surgery in Arizona.

There's so much to like about Kirby. His stocky build, his powerful swing, his first name "Kirby," his last name "Puckett" that rhymes with so many great things, his willingness to escort women into men's rooms, and the fact that Chris Rock named him as one of the only two black people in Minnesota, along with Prince.

Best wishes to Kirby, his family, and the doctors working on him.

Twins release statement on Kirby Puckett [MLB.com]
Puckett acquitted of assault charges [Minnesota Public Radio]