Harmon Killebrew

Killebrew tied Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox for the American League home run title in 1967, but the Twins lost the pennant the final weekend when they dropped the final two games in Boston. Two years later, Killebrew, rebounding from a hamstring pull suffered in the 1968 All-Star game, had a career season. He belted forty-nine homers, drove in 140 runs and was voted Most Valuable Player as the Twins, in baseball's new divisional realignment system, won the AL West title. Minnesota, however, lost the AL Championship Series in three straight to Baltimore in both 1969 and 1970. Killebrew homered twice in those six games.

After the 1970 season, Killebrew's career began a gradual decline, and the Twins released him after the 1974 season. Press reports cited fiction between Killebrew and Griffith, which Killebrew denied. Killebrew played his final season with the Kansas City Royals before retiring. He worked as a Twins broadcaster for a few years and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984.