The tradition is to wait for round numbers before celebrating the anniversary of a monumental event. For some reason, the local sporting public was made aware that Monday was the 46th anniversary of Harmon Killebrew's home run that was the first to travel into the second deck at Met Stadium.
Killebrew hit a three-run home run in the fourth inning off the California Angels' Lew Burdette on June 3, 1967. The Twins needed that blast to hold off the Angels 8-6.
This is the home run that is still celebrated with a marker at the Mall of America. The truth is, Harmon long contended that the second-inning home run that he hit off Jack Sanford a day later was hit longer and harder. That home run was hit farther into left-center field and smacked off the facade to the second deck.
Dan Barreiro wrote a Star Tribune column on Harmon a number of years ago and The Killer said:
"The funny thing about it is that if you ask Lew about that now, he'll tell you there was a 40 mile per hour wind. Actually, it was a calm day."
Tom Mee, the Twins' public relations director, had written a few sentences for PA announcer Bob Casey to use when Harmon came to the plate for the first time on June 4 in what became an 8-7 Twins' victory.
"Just as Bob Casey was talking about the first one I hit, I hit one off Sanford that was actually hit harder," Killebrew told Barreiro.
I talked to Harmon about those back-to-back blasts a few times over the years and he would say the same thing. I found it fascinating that even the most-powerful of hitters, as was Killebrew, would have a period of a few days in their careers that they were stronger and on pitches more than at any time.
