Kirby Puckett, a Gheorghe Hall of Famer.
Monday, March 06, 2006
Kirby Puckett, Rest in Peace
Kirby Puckett died today. Here's to a guy who simply made the people around him happier, leading by example with what we like to call gheorghe de vivre.
Kirby Puckett, a Gheorghe Hall of Famer.
Kirby Puckett, a Gheorghe Hall of Famer.
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37 comments:
Couldn't have said it better...Touch 'em all Kirby, touch 'em all.
kirby was one of the original gheorghes, as i recall. we should all be as happy to go to work every day.
Kirby Puckett went through some of the struggles a lot of ex-athletes do when his playing days were cut short, having trouble adjusting to a world that doesn't overlook social transgressions once you stop appearing on television nightly. Last night Dave Winfield trashed the notion (and those who'd postulate it) that Puckett wasn't the excitable cherub he'd seemed to be all those years, however, and that he was anything less than the Gheorghe that the state of Minnesota worshiped all those years.
ESPN.com has a link to the 911 call transcript, which I have no interest in reading but seems a pretty callous display of the information age.
But they also have a link to his Hall of Fame induction speech, and that's worth reading.
Kirby was the only member of that 1987 Twins team that I didn't want to violently murder with an axe handle, at least. (Kent Hrbek and Frank Viola have far worse planned for them). However, I will say that my image of Kirby was forver changed by the SI article that ran on him a few years back. It doesn't take away from the player he was (First Ballot HOF? Seems a little much to me.)but it does change the overall feel of his story.
He did have one of the great Letterman Top Ten moments when he appeared on one about how to screw up the name's of athletes as "Turkey Bucket". Oh man, that killed me.
Adios Barry Bonds...
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2358236
The anti-Kirby Puckett. Has Bonds ever looked like he's having fun?
But wait...He dressed up like Paual Abdul in full drag! He was having fun with teammates AND poking fun at himself. It was just a coincidence that any cameras were around to see Barry act like that, normally he does it within the clubhouse. He's really all about the camraderie of the locker room and interacting with his peers.
What a transparent douchebag.
Barry Bonds really is the anit-Kirby Puckett. Intersting concept... A guy that is hated in the locker room, hated by the media, hated by the league, and never beats his wife...
Dennis, I'm gonna have to question your police work a little there. If you read the SI story, Barry is no stranger to the occassional terroristic threat and strangualtion of the women in his life. Roid rage--it's not just for after school specials anymore.
Greatest After School Special of All Time...
Welcome Home, Jellybean
Please. I have no facts here. I'm just here to offer up conjecture and stir up dissent.
But, let's be honest - Kirby wasn't this hero he's being made out to be right now. He just appeared that way cuz he was likeable by the Sports world. And as meat-eating, heterosexual males, we forgive him his transgressions, because Sports does that to us. The sporting world is this comfortable little universe outside the real world where what you do on the court, field, or pitch is irrelavent to the real world... But, then he dies and transcends into a hero in both worlds...Kinda like Jim Valvano in my opinion - everyone now thinks he was this perfect coach cuz he faught (and ultimately lost to) cancer. But, we forget how he pretty much invented the concept of illegal recruiting and other shady hoops operations. Too bad ESPN wasn't the investigative machine it is now, cuz, brother, he woulda gone down!
Dennis, you're gonna make Dickie V cry. Those were just ALLEGED accusations against Mr. Valvano. NC State claims all charges are false and unsubstantiated, so no need to harp on Jimmy's grade fixing, hidden positive drug tests, and cash payments to players.
The more I think about it though, we're (most of you anyways) all fallable. So, why not remember the good things people contributed instead of the bad, heh??
And, like my boy Forest said: "That's all i have to say about that."
I'm not fallable...so, I disagree with your entire argument.
Cuse up 12...gotta have it.
Lead down to 2...seven minutes to play.
cmon 'nati.
i can't believe i typed that. thank god huggins is gone, or i'd have to go to confession now.
boy, is temple capable of making teams look putrid. not that rhody is any kind of powerhouse, but they've got 9 points in the first 14 minutes of the 2nd half.
So I didn't see it live cause work sucks balls, but that doesn't take the excitement out of it...now Gerry Mac needs to beat UConn all by himself. Yeah, it could happen.
I like Notre Dame to beat Georgetown by double-digits, maybe as many as 15-20. Normally I don't dig on ND (Rob, you'll remember I went against the ND grain in football and won some of your money), but G'town -- almost as much as G-Dub -- is vastly overrated. Winning against Duke? Come on, that's so passe. Even FSU did that. (Hi, Dennis.)
76-57, Irish.
Remember, you always read it first on Gheorghe: The Blog. Now back to bashing the recently deceased. (Hi again, Dennis.)
I really hate that Don Knotts guy. And Superman's wife sucked too.
Louisville is beating Pitt tonight too...
"Twenty more players like him (Hansbrough), LaMarcus Aldridge and Adam Morrison and I'd really be excited about the upcoming NCAA Tournament."
This is why SportGuy needs to shut the fuck up. Since he obviously doesn't have the ability to do it, let me rattle off 20 other guys you should be excited to watch in the upcoming 2006 NCAA Tournament (seriously, what a douchebag):
Brandon Roy
J.J. Redick
Steve Burt
J.P. Batista
Nick Fazekas
Allan Ray and Randy Foye
Glen Davis and Tyrus Thomas
Leon Powe
Mike Gansey
Greg Brunner
P.J. Tucker
Shannon Brown
Dee Brown
Chris Lofton
Yannick Noah's kid
Rodney Carney
Squeaky Johnson
Carl Krauser
G'town 67, ND 63...well done Whit.
I told you so.
Meanwhile, the U.S. of A. is getting punded by our friends to the north. 5-0 in the 3rd. Dontrelle was hit, Al Leiter (?!) came in and threw a little gas on the fire. Nice, Al.
That would be "pounded," of course. Nobody gets punded, not any more.
yeah, but we've almost got adam loewen over his pitch count. we'll smoke their middle relief.
he says, having no idea who their middle relief is.
Good news for Rob: Red Soxer Adam Stern just hit an inside-the-park home run.
Bad news: For Canada. The US is shell-shocked. 8-0.
it's the curse of a-rod - he's the anti-jeter
I gotta say, I wasn't thinking I'd be into the WBC, but I am really, really into it. Cuba and Panama had a see-saw barn-burner of a game today, and watching the US play yesterday was pretty awesome. (Today, not so much, but seeing those Canucks so fired up is kind of cool.) The players are into it, and what fans they have are stoked.
I'm a convert.
Finally . . . America is on the board.
Holy cow. This is exciting. Varitek hits a grand slam. 8-6 now.
In other news, Rob suddenly needs to revisit his prediction for the Red Sox.
you forgot to mention Graham Brown, rebounding juggernaut
"Without Gerry McNamara we wouldn't have won ten fucking games this year."
Well...alright then Coach.
"Louisville is beating Pitt tonight too..."
With 3:00 left in the first half, Louisville is down 35-7. Uh . . . wow. [Insert football score joke here.]
The 40-22 second half almost made you look like a donkey, but alas, it is me again. Jim Boeheim dropping f bombs was awesome...but not as awesome as McNamara dropping that 3.
Just surfed in, and couldn't think of a better way 2 kick-off spring!
;]
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