Killebrew, Harmon C.
Baseball
b. June 29, 1936, Payette, ID
Nicknamed "Killer" because of his power, the 5-foot-11, 213-pound Killebrew was a right-handed first baseman who won 6 AL home runs championships and was the league's RBI leader 3 times.
He spent parts of five seasons with the Washington Senators, from 1954 through 1958, before becoming a full-time player in 1959. Although he batted only .242 in 1959, he led the league with 42 home runs and also had 105 RBI.
Killebrew was used mostly at third base that season but was moved to first the following year because of his defensive liabilities. The franchise moved to Minnesota and became known as the Twins in 1961. In Minnesota, Killebrew won three consecutive home run titles with 48 in 1962, 45 in 1963, and 49 in 1964. He was also the league leader in RBI with 126 in 1962 and in slugging with a .555 percentage in 1963.
Despite being walked a league-leading 131 times in 1967, Killebrew was again the home run leader with 44, and he had 113 RBI. He played in only 100 games, many as a pinch-hitter, because of injury in 1968, but in 1969 he won the league's most valuable player award. His 49 home runs and 140 RBI led the league as did his 145 walks.
After hitting 41 home runs with 113 RBI in 1970, Killebrew's home run totals began to decline. Still, he was the league's leader with 119 RBI in 1971. Killebrew spent three more injury-laden seasons in Minnesota and finished his career with the Kansas City Royals in 1975, when he batted only .199 with 14 home runs in 106 games.