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Harmon Clayton Killebrew
Minnesota Twins
Outfield
Born: June 29, 1936, Payette, ID
Signed: Signed by the Washington Senators as an amateur free agent, June 19, 1954
Major League Teams: Washington Senators 1954-1960; Minnesota Twins 1961-1974; Kansas City Royals 1975
Died: May 17, 2011, Scottsdale, AZ (age 74)
Hall of Fame Induction: 1984
Harmon Killebrew was one of the most prolific sluggers of his era, and upon his retirement he was fourth on the major league all-time home run list and second to Babe Ruth in the American League. Killebrew led the league six times in home runs and three times in RBIs. He was a 13-time All-Star and received MVP votes in 11 different seasons. He helped lead the Twins to the their first pennant in 1965, and while he hit .286 in the World Series, the Dodgers prevailed in seven games. In 1967, he hit the longest home run ever recorded at Minnesota's Metropolitan Stadium at 520 feet. Killebrew attained career highs in home runs (49) and RBIs (140) in 1969 and won the league's MVP honors that season. He wrapped up his 22-year big league career with a final season with the Royals, serving as the team's designated hitter. When the Royals visited Minnesota in early May 1975, the Twins held a pre-game ceremony to retire Killebrew's #3. He was inducted into baseball's Hall of Fame in 1984, and was in the inaugural class of the Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame in 2000. In 2,435 games, Killebrew accumulated 2,086 hits while batting .256. He hit 573 career home runs to go along with 1,584 RBIs.
After retiring as a player, Killebrew served as a broadcaster for the Twins, Athletics and Angels between 1976 and 1988. He also briefly served as a hitting instructor with the Athletics. Nicknamed "Killer" on the field, by all accounts Killebrew was one of the kindest and most well-respected men to ever play the game.
Some text for this post originally appeared on my 1956 Topps blog.
Building the Set
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards - Babylon, NY) - Card #547
The Card / Twins Team Set
This is Killebrew's third appearance in the set, as he appeared on the A.L. home run (#3) and RBI league leaders (#5) cards back in series one. The cartoon on the back celebrates his third straight home run title in 1964. I've seen this card in magazines, books and at baseball card shows over the past 40 years and it's been one of those iconic baseball cards in my mind that perfectly represents the era. I was surprised to find the card has only ever been reprinted once, as part of the 2015 Topps Cardboard Icons 5 x 7 series that reprinted all of Killebrew's Topps flagship cards.
1965 Season
Ranked by Baseball Reference WAR, this was Killebrew's seventh best season, but his numbers were still impressive. He was the opening day first baseman for the Twins and voted as the starting first baseman for the American League All-Stars, making his seventh All-Star Game appearance. Killebrew homered in the game off Jim Maloney (#530) in front of his hometown crowd at Metropolitan Stadium.
March 6, 2022 from The Philly Show (Uncle Dick's Cards - Babylon, NY) - Card #547
This is the 63rd of 102 cards acquired for our set from the Baseball Card Sports Memorabilia Show, affectionately known as The Philly Show, held in the basement of the Valley Forge Casino Resort in King of Prussia in early March. We went nuts and left the show needing only 12 more cards to complete our 1965 Topps set, and I wrote about the show in detail over at The Phillies Room. Having wandered aimlessly among the dealer tables looking for binders with vintage commons, I decided to check to see if Uncle Dick's had refreshed their inventory following the December show, during which I had wiped out both their 1965 Topps binders. Much to my pleasant surprise, they had.
I found 49 commons and semi-stars we needed for our set in the two neon green binders of 1965 Topps cards at Uncle Dick's. Having reached the end of the binders, I asked if there were any star cards from the set available for my perusal, and of course there were. I found this Killebrew card along with the Mel Stottlemyre (#550) in a modest stack of star cards, and I offered a bundled price for the two, less than the original combined price, and the dealer accepted. Having once again wiped out Uncle Dick's stock of needed 1965 Topps cards, we wandered the show room floor a little longer before I settled in for the next bulk purchase of commons.
The Card / Twins Team Set
This is Killebrew's third appearance in the set, as he appeared on the A.L. home run (#3) and RBI league leaders (#5) cards back in series one. The cartoon on the back celebrates his third straight home run title in 1964. I've seen this card in magazines, books and at baseball card shows over the past 40 years and it's been one of those iconic baseball cards in my mind that perfectly represents the era. I was surprised to find the card has only ever been reprinted once, as part of the 2015 Topps Cardboard Icons 5 x 7 series that reprinted all of Killebrew's Topps flagship cards.
1965 Season
Ranked by Baseball Reference WAR, this was Killebrew's seventh best season, but his numbers were still impressive. He was the opening day first baseman for the Twins and voted as the starting first baseman for the American League All-Stars, making his seventh All-Star Game appearance. Killebrew homered in the game off Jim Maloney (#530) in front of his hometown crowd at Metropolitan Stadium.
He was batting .278 with 22 home runs and 70 RBIs when he suffered a gruesome arm injury on August 2nd. In a game agains the Orioles, Russ Snyder (#204) bunted down the third base line and ran into Killebrew's outstretched right arm as he crossed first base. Killebrew had dislocated his elbow and he missed seven weeks of crucial playing time. Still, the Twins stayed in the race and Killebrew returned to the line-up on September 21st. He played in 113 games overall, batting .269 during the regular season with 25 home runs and 75 RBIs. Despite the injury, he still finished 15th in the league's MVP voting. Killebrew was one of the Twins' top hitters in the World Series, collecting six hits including a Game 4 home run.
Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card: 1955 Topps #124
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (20): 1955-1956, 1958-1975
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2022 Topps Opening Day Bomb Squad #BS-2
1,858 - Killebrew non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 8/1/22.
Sources:
1956 Topps Blog
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First Mainstream Card: 1955 Topps #124
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (20): 1955-1956, 1958-1975
Most Recent Mainstream Card: 2022 Topps Opening Day Bomb Squad #BS-2
1,858 - Killebrew non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 8/1/22.
Sources:
1956 Topps Blog
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