Killebrew was the American League's Most Valuable Player in 1969 when he hit 49 home runs with an amazing 140 RBI and 145 walks, all team records that still stand. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on January 10, 1984, the first Twin to receive that honor.
Oliva collected 1,917 hits and retired with a .304 career average. He is the only player to win batting titles in his first two seasons and was the winner of three in his 15-year career, which still stands as the club's longevity mark. His prowess as a hitter was demonstrated in the fact that he lead the league in hits five times, and his 220 career home runs rank third all-time among Twins.
Carew, who won his only American League Most Valuable Player award in 1977 when he finished with a .388 average, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on the first ballot, January 8, 1991. He had his number 29 retired on July 19, 1987.
The first-ballot Hall of Famer (inducted in 2001), 10-time All-Star, 6-time Gold Glove Award winner and 5-time Silver Slugger Award winner had his career cut short when he awoke with blurred vision caused by glaucoma on the morning of March 28, 1996. He was later forced to announce his retirement due to irreversible damage to the retina in his right eye on July 12, 1996. He retired as the Twins' all-time leader in hits (2,304), doubles (414), total bases (3,453), at-bats (7,244) and runs (1,071).
During his storied career, the man known as 'TK' has had the chance to manage hundreds of players, including current and future Hall of Famers like Steve Carlton, Dave Winfield and Paul Molitor. Then of course, he managed the most popular Twin of all, Kirby Puckett.
