RIP Harmon Killebrew.
Even though I obviously was not old enough to see him play, nor am I a Twins fan, Killebrew was one of my favorite “old timey” players. First, he has one of the best baseball names in history, right up there with Hank Aaron, Nolan Ryan, and Dan Quisenberry. Not only does he have “kill” in his name, he also has “harm.” It almost sounds like he’s all about “harming” a “mon” then afterwards “killing” “a” “brew” which is down right sinister.
Secondly, he was always on the old, black-and-white “Home Run Derby” show that ESPN would replay during the day. Me and my brother watched it all the time (usually after a Cubs day game on WGN and a few re-runs of “Good Times”) even though it’s a god awful show. They’d make the players sit and talk while the the other player batted and you’d get fascinating exchanges such as “Well, what do you think he’s trying to do there?” “Well, he’s probably trying to hit the ball over the wall.” “Alright, we’ll be right back after a word from Camel cigarettes.”
Thirdly, and most importantly, he was on my 1965 Topps RBI Leaders card… the only “Mickey Mantle” card I’ve ever owned. Killabrew, to me, by far looks cooler than both Brooks Robinson and Mickey. Dick Stuart looks like a straight-up ding-dong… and that’s a fact!
