Puckett in Ariz hospital after suffering stroke

[Frayed Knot]

Not many details as of yet.

[metirish]

Yeah I just saw the scroll on ESPN, he's having surgery.

[Theoldmole]

Prayers for Kirby.

[Zvon]

TheOldMole wrote: Prayers for Kirby.

just saw this.Bummer.
Yea, ditto.

[Zvon]

[Guest Yancy Street Gang]

44 years old.

Yikes.

[MFS62]

Heard this morning that he is in critical condition.

Later

[patchyfogg]

I hope he gets better, if only just to use the "He'll be up groping nurses in no time" line.

[Guest Bret Sabermetric]

I just heard he died.

[Guest ScarletKnight41]

ESPN.com confirms Bret's sad news -

]Puckett Dies Following Stroke Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett died Monday, a day after suffering a stroke at his Arizona home, a hospital spokeswoman said. The 44-year-old Puckett, who led the Twins to two World Series titles before his career was cut short by glaucoma, was stricken Sunday morning at his Arizona home.

RIP Kirby

[seawolf17]

Wow, that sucks. Tough situation, Kirby. Kinda of a borderline Hall of Famer, but a beloved legend in Minnesota. Then came the glaucoma or whatever it was, followed by some sort of sexual misconduct allegations of some kind, IIRC. A very bizarre, star-crossed 44 years. Wish he could have gotten more out of life.

[metirish]

RIP - sad news.

[nymr83]

RIP.

not sure if this thread is an "appropriate" place for a HOF discussion but i'd like to revisit that elsewhere if anyone cares...

[Guest cooby]

Very sad.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Terrible. Peeps have strokes all the time. Must've been some sort of massive brainstorm to lead to emergency surgery and then kill a 44-year-old athete. I wonder if it was related to his career-ending injury.

[Zvon]

[metirish]

Kirby had gotten huge in his post playing days, sad really, I suppose that might have been part of the problem.

[Frayed Knot]

Glaucoma & obesity are never good things when trying to avoid strokes and live long.

RiP to an outwardly happy guy whose smile may have been hiding a few demons; and to a seemingly blessed life that was thrown a couple of nasty curves later on.

Weird that he may have been the youngest living HoFer. Off the top of my head Rizzuto may be the oldest. I do know that Feller is the longest serving.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

His home run in Game 6 of the 1991 series was one of the most unforgettable moments I've ever seen in baseball. Who couldn't love the guy after that.

"And we will see you, tomorrow night!"

[Guest Edgy DC]

Yeah, I suddenly recalled the weight he had put on, but the forum disappeared before I could edit my comments.

What made that Game Six extra-kewl is that he had predicted he'd be the difference in that game. He also made a huge catch at the track earlier.

[Guest rpackrat]

Very, very sad. I read that he was near 300 lbs on his 5'8" frame. That's a big guy.

Boy, he was fun to watch as a player.

[Guest Yancy Street Gang]

If there was an Ultimate Twins Database, he'd be getting a ton of hits today.

Reading what Twins fans thought of him, it occurred to me that they loved him for many of the same reasons that we love Mookie Wilson. He's their Mookie. Or, to give the Hall of Famer his due, Mookie was our Kirby Puckett.

They even both had cute names.

[Guest cooby]

There was a kid named Kirby in my sixth grade Sunday School class once, and though he wasn't at all a wimp, I could tell he was sensitive about that name.

Kirby Puckett gave the name Kirby respect!!

[Guest Edgy DC]

Not for nothing, but it seems that traits like an "ever-present smile and infectious exuberance" (from Kirby Puckett's Hall of Fame plaque) are the sort that are treated as much more noteable for a black player --- Kirby Puckett, Mookie Wilson, Ernie Banks, maybe Roy Campanella.

Roger McDowell's goofiness and giddiness made him notable, but he wasn't widely called "a great ambassador for the game" (although all those appearances at the MTV Softball Classic suggest he maybe was). Gary Carter's affability got him widely labelled a "phony."

I only mention it because (a) the white folks who largely run baseball and largely support baseball perhaps more need black players who are sweet and fun and happy rather than surly and threatening and ( maybe it's a tough row to hoe --- to project joy and enthusasm on days when maybe you're not feeling it, and run the risk of being labelled a Tom in private conversation among your fellow black players.

[Guest Yancy Street Gang]

Interesting point. I guess it's possible that white people prefer blacks to be smiling and non-threatening. Of course, we prefer everyone to be non-threatening, but that inherent racism indicates that blacks pose a greater threat.

I'd hate to think I'm a racist for liking Mookie Wilson. Tug McGraw was a white guy who had the same kind of charm, I think.

On the flip side, I was following UMDB referrer links the other day, and found a ESPN forum linking to Kevin Mitchell's page. The question posed was, more or less, who would you be more afraid of encountering in a dark alley, Kevin Mitchell or Lastings Milledge? Mitchell's earned his scary rep, but the comparison to Milledge can only be racism. Maybe the Mets can hire Mookie as a smiling coach to teach Lastings to be non-threatening.

[Guest Edgy DC]

I'd be more afraid of Milledge if I was 14-year-old girl. I'd be more afraid of Mitchell if I was a kitten.

Seriously, I don't mean to accuse anyone of being a racist, though I suggest a double-standard exists, it's probably not meant hatefully (or even realized) in most circles. While a double standard suggests the presence of racism, it wouldn't be of the active unreconstructed hateful sort that should get someone (or everyone) tagged a racist.

[soupcan]

Edgy DC wrote: Not for nothing, but it seems that traits like an "ever-present smile and infectious exuberance" (from Kirby Puckett's Hall of Fame plaque) are the sort that are treated as much more noteable for a black player --- Kirby Puckett, Mookie Wilson, Ernie Banks, maybe Roy Campanella. Roger McDowell's goofiness and giddiness made him notable, but he wasn't widely called "a great ambassador for the game" (although all those appearances at the MTV Softball Classic suggest he maybe was). Gary Carter's affability got him widely labelled a "phony." I only mention it because (a) the white folks who largely run baseball and largely support baseball perhaps more need black players who are sweet and fun and happy rather than surly and threatening and ( maybe it's a tough row to hoe --- to project joy and enthusasm on days when maybe you're not feeling it, and run the risk of being labelled a Tom in private conversation among your fellow black players.

Perhaps because it is the minority that faces so much adversity that he/she is given a tacit approval to be surly that when we become familiar with a person of color who seems to be able to shed the weight of that burden and just 'be happy' no matter what the circumstance, that person stands out.

So on the flip side of Roger McDowell and Gary Carter you have guys like Eddie Murray or Albert Belle who, while 'surly' were never compared in terms of personality to a guy like Ty Cobb. Why? Because it is more 'acceptable' for the black player to be surly?

And just to further muddy the argument, Bill 'Spaceman' Lee, Yogi Berra and Turk Wendall are three white guys who are labled as goofy, affable, happy-go-lucky.

="Yancy Street Gang"]The question posed was, more or less, who would you be more afraid of encountering in a dark alley, Kevin Mitchell or Lastings Milledge? Mitchell's earned his scary rep, but the comparison to Milledge can only be racism. Maybe the Mets can hire Mookie as a smiling coach to teach Lastings to be non-threatening.

I agree this is ludicrous as Mitchell was a gang member but let's not forget that our friend Lastings did have some sexual assualt charges levied against him. Girlfriend or no, his actions were illiegal enough for teams to take pause before drafting a 'can't-miss' prospect.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Whatever was winning about Yogi Berra's personality, the Hall of Fame didn't find it necessary to put it on his Hall of Fame plaque.



Comments about Puckett that speak more to fuzzy abstractions such as personality, character, and style rather than concrete established accomplishments:

• "...proven team leader..."
• "...an ever-present smile..."
• "...infectious exuberance..."
• "...led the Twins..."
• "...elegance..."
• "...style..."
• "...routinely scaling outfield walls..."

Comments about Berra that speak more to fuzzy abstractions such as personality, character, and style rather than concrete established accomplishments.

• ...

Now, they may also be attributed in part to (1) the narrower font allowing for more editorializing on latter-day plaques and (2) Berra's longer and more accomplished career providing more than enough fodder to fill his plaque, but I still find it noteworthy.

Also, I could be wrong, but I think Barry Bonds has gotten way more crap for being cool and detached than Ted Williams ever did.

[Guest Yancy Street Gang]

No doubt, but Ted and Barry are separated by about four decades.

For a more recent example, how about Kevin McReynolds? He did get heat for his aloofness, but did his pale skin color yield him any slack?

[soupcan]

Yancy Street Gang wrote: No doubt, but Ted and Barry are separated by about four decades

As were Kirby and Yogi.

It's obviously not black and white (couldn't resist). It's an interesting debate.