Harmon Killebrew passes away: Baseball legend

Harmon Killebrew

One of baseball's legends passed away this morning. Harmon Killebrew, Minnesota Twins first baseman and prodigious home run hitter passed away at his home in Scottsdale, Arizona at the age of 74.

Killebrew hit 573 homers in a 22-year baseball career that ended in 1975. He broke into the Majors in 1954.

Twins team president Dave St. Peter issued this statement on the team website: "No individual has ever meant more to the Minnesota Twins organization and millions of fans across Twins Territory than Harmon Killebrew." "Harmon will be long remembered as one of the most prolific home run hitters in the history of the game and the leader of a group of players who helped lay the foundation for the long-term success of the Twins franchise and Major League Baseball in the Upper Midwest."

Among his accomplishments, 11 All-Star selections and the 1969 Most Valuable Player award. And for those not aware, he was the model for the silhouette'd logo used my Major League Baseball. Killebrew was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984.

Killebrew spent his retirement as a successful businessman and occasional stops on the memorabilia circuit. He was one of baseball's greatest hitters.

No word yet on services, but you can be there will be a large Major League Baseball contingent there.

Here's a look back from our friends at KARE-TV in the Twin Cities...

Killebrew Entering Hospice Care

((HT: KARE-TV Minneapolis-St Paul))

Minnesota Twins Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew announced that he has ended his agressive treatment against esophageal cancer and is entering hospice care.

"It is with profound sadness that I share with you that my continued battle with esophageal cancer is coming to an end," Killebrew said in a statement released by the Minnesota Twins. "With the continued love and support of my wife, Nita, I have exhausted all options with respect to controlling this awful disease. My illness has progressed beyond my doctors' expectation of cure."

Here's Renee Tessman's piece from when Killebrew was first diagnosed back in late 2010...


Killebrew was supposed to throw out the first pitch for the Twins this season at Target Field, but was too sick to do so...

DEVELOPING: Twins Liriano Throws No-No

((HT: MLB Network/youtube))

The Minnesota Twins Francisco Liriano threw the 2011 season's first no-hitter in a 1-0 win over the Chicago White Sox.

Jason Kubel hit a solo home run for the only run of the game...
here's the ninth inning...


Liriano threw 123 pitches, 66 for strikes. He walked an uncharacteristic six while striking out only two...

More when we know more...

Do Not Dangle Your Porkchop In Public

((HT: YES Network via Deadspin))
There are the hazards of reporting and then there are hazards of reporting...

The YES Network's Kimberly Jones experienced a new level of hazard when she was alerting the masses of all the cool food at the Minnesota Twins new ballpark.

Her hazard... beer-swilling Yankee fan...


Whaddya wanna bet she really wanted to take what's left of the porkchop and poke the Yankee fan's eye out...???

Bonus... and Michael Kay was right...

Squirrel versus Target Field

The joys of outdoor baseball. The Minnesota Twins can now say that they've had a game interrupted by a varmint.

The varmint in question, a squirrel that popped onto the field during the 4th inning of yesterday's game against the New York Yankees

Check out the video: (You Tube)

This gives me the opportunity to showcase my favorite "Squirrel" moment...from Doug, the dog from the movie up: (More You Tube)

Mauer Signs Through 2018

((HT: Minneapolis Star-Tribune))

The Twins announced that they have signed Joe Mauer to an eight-year, $184 million contract, which will keep the catcher under contract through 2018.

KMSP-TV/MyFoxTwinCities Paul Blume got to a fan piece at the new stadium...


And the HQ still enjoys his acting prowess...



Well played, Mauer...

Gardenhire: Ump Has A "Smart-Ass Mouth"

((HT: FoxSports/Morosi, Detroit Free Press/Lowe))

Twins manager Ron Gardenhire grew animated Friday night as he discussed his ejection from his team's 10-8 loss to the Tigers that included several controversial calls.

Home plate umpire Hunter Wendelstedt tossed Gardenhire ((pictured, thanks Julian H Gonzalez/Detroit Free Press)) in the second inning after some in the Minnesota dugout accused Detroit starter Armando Galarraga of balking.

"It's a quick-pitch," Gardenhire explained afterward. "Our guys in the dugout started yelling. He (Wendelstedt) took his mask off and yelled, 'I'm going to throw you out if I hear one more thing!' I said, 'I haven't said a word.' He says, 'I'm going to throw you out if you whatever.' I walked out, and he threw me out. He says, 'How do you like that?'"

Gardenhire went on ... with gusto.

"That's the second time I've run into this with this guy," he said. "A lot of problems with Hunter. He's got an attitude. At home, a few years back, he said, 'You're just out here for showtime.'

"He's got a smart-ass mouth. Tonight was ridiculous, really. A lot of calls not good. He had a bad night. He doesn't probably think so, because he's God as umpires go. Not good. Really not good. I was really disappointed. There was no reason for me to get thrown out."

Gardenhire concluded:

"I get real disappointed when an umpire has an attitude like that, thinks he's a big shot, throws you out and feels good about it in the second inning. It's too bad. It doesn't have to be that way. It shouldn't have to be that way.

"I'll get fined. He'll be fine. Anything else, before I get suspended here, if I haven't already?"

When a pool reporter informed Wendelstedt of Gardenhire's comments, the umpire called them "very unfair."

"Basically, for a manager that has been around for so long, you would think he would understand the way baseball operates, that a warning is a warning," Wendelstedt said.

"I'll give it to you this way: I'm a parent, and I have two daughters. When I tell them not to do something, I don't tell them 20 times. They get one or two times. And he was warned numerous occasions. The dugout complained five times in an inning and a half, and he was warned. There was some not-so-kind things said to me — which is why, when he was ejected, that's when I said, 'How do you like that if you're going to be that way?'

"For someone who's been around the game so long, he should know what it takes to get ejected. He ejected himself from the ballpark. The last thing I want to do is sit around tonight and write an ejection report and have to go through this. Because now based on his comments, there will be an investigation, and I would challenge him to sit down and watch the replays. Because he was wrong on whether the pitcher was balking or not.

"We can sit down, and I'm going to invite him to my umpire school, if he wants to learn, what is a balk. He can come down in January to umpire school and we'll teach him. But for the cheap shots, he brought up the past. In the past, you can look up in the newspaper, I had very complimentary things to say about him, and I got in a lot of trouble for being nice. He took cheap shots at me a few years ago, too.

"It's a simple ejection in my book. You warn somebody so many times, I'm not a pin cushion."