Mike Hirschbeck, the son of major league umpire John Hirschbeck, was at Cleveland's Progressive Field on April 4 to greet the Twins as they took on the Indians. Those who saw him said he was in good spirits and cracking jokes.
But four days later, Mike died at age 27 after a long battle with a brain disease.
Twins manager Ron Gardenhire left the team to travel to the Akron, Ohio, area to attend the funeral. Terry Steinbach managed Friday and will do so again Saturday in Gardenhire's absence.
Mike Hirschbeck's association with the Twins goes back more than 20 years. Diagnosed with a rare brain disease — adrenoleukodystrophy, or ALD — he underwent a bone-marrow transplant at University of Minnesota Hospital in 1992. Then-manager Tom Kelly visited him in the hospital at the time. Mike also got to know Gardenhire and the rest of the coaching staff.
His father is one of the more well-liked umpires in the majors. Based in Sarasota, Fla., during spring training, Mike Hirschbeck would come over to Ed Smith Stadium and serve as Twins batboy when they came to town to play the Reds and later the Orioles. Mike last was a batboy during a spring game in 2013.
"[Gardenhire] was trying to figure out what to do [Thursday], obviously because of his relationship with the Hirschbecks," Steinbach said.
"You all saw Michael on our bench a lot. So there's a place in Gardy's heart for him. We knew he would try everything he could do to get there."
John Hirschbeck also had another son, John Drew, die from ALD in 1993 at age 8.
