Tribute to Kirby

2,304 hits. 207 homeruns. Six Gold Gloves. 10 consecutive All-Star teams (1986-1995). Minnesota Twins baseball hero is gone. At age 46, Kirby Puckett passed away yesterday after suffering a stroke Sunday morning.

It is rare a professional athlete stays with one organization, but Puckett was with the Twins for 12 seasons. The centerfielder and big hitter led the Twins to 1987 and 1991 World Series Titles before he was forced to retire early, in 1995, due to glaucoma.

With a career batting average of .318, Kirby had attained the highest batting average for a right-handed hitter since Joe DiMaggio. Kirby was elected to The Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown in 2001 with 82% of the votes.(423/515).

Kirby was an All-Star 10 times and was the third youngest player to be elected to the Hall of Fame. He was also nominated as a finalist for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.

He is remembered for many things, but two exact plays come to mind in the 1991 World Series. The leaping catch against the wall that would've given Ron Gant at least a double and put the Braves on top in the series. And in the bottom of the 11th, Kirby hit a walk off homerun that led the Twins to a World Series Championship in the next game.

With all his successes, Kirby will be remembered as a great ball player and Minnesota Twin hero. He will be missed.