Harmon Killebrew - Later Life

Later Life

Killebrew was first eligible for the Hall of Fame in 1981 and received 239 votes, or 59.6% of the vote; 75% of the vote is required for induction. In 1982, Killebrew received 59.3% of the vote, taking a backseat to Hank Aaron and Frank Robinson, who made it in their first year of eligibility. After receiving 71.9% of the vote in 1983, Killebrew said that not getting in that year was more difficult to accept than the previous two times, and asked "Why do the writers feel there only has to be a certain number inducted each time?" In 1984, Killebrew received 83.1% of the vote and was elected to the Hall in his fourth year of eligibility, joining Luis Aparicio and Don Drysdale as electees.

Following his retirement, Killebrew was a television broadcaster for the Twins at WCCO-TV from 1976 to 1978, the Oakland Athletics from 1979 to 1982, the California Angels in 1983 and back with Minnesota from 1984 to 1988. While with Oakland, he also served as a major- and minor-league hitting instructor. In the late 1980s, Killebrew had financial problems. In July 1988, his house went into foreclosure and, in 1989, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that he had fallen $700,000 into debt. He also divorced his first wife of over 30 years, Elaine, who he had married in 1955. Soon after, Killebrew's health failed. In May 1990, he was rushed to the hospital with a collapsed lung and damaged esophagus. Together with a subsequent abscess and staph infection, Killebrew endured three surgeries and nearly died. He used a wheelchair for some time post-surgery. By December 1990, his health was improved and he was remarried to Nita.

Killebrew was involved in a Boise, Idaho insurance and securities business. He moved to Scottsdale, Arizona in 1990, where he chaired the Harmon Killebrew Foundation, which he created in 1998. Killebrew founded the Danny Thompson Memorial Golf Tournament in 1977 with former Idaho congressman Ralph Harding, which is played annually in late August in Sun Valley, Idaho, and has donated more than $8.6 million to leukemia and cancer research. Thompson was a Twins teammate who continued his major league career while suffering from leukemia; he died in December 1976 at the age of 29.

On December 29, 2010, Killebrew announced that he had been diagnosed with esophageal cancer and started treatment. On May 13, 2011, a Minnesota Twins press release reported he was ceasing treatment and entering hospice care, because his illness had progressed beyond his doctors' expectation of cure. To honor Killebrew, the Twins wore their 1961 throwback alternate jerseys at home for the remainder of the 2011 season; he was also honored by the Washington Nationals, who hung a jersey with Killebrew's name and number 3 in their home dugout. Killebrew died on May 17, 2011 at his home in Scottsdale, Arizona at the age of 74, a month and a half short of his 75th birthday. Following his death, the Twins released a statement:

No individual has ever meant more to the Minnesota Twins organization and millions of fans across Twins Territory than Harmon Killebrew. Harmon will long be remembered as one of the most prolific home run hitters in the history of the game and the leader of a group of players who helped lay the foundation for the long-term success of the Twins franchise and Major League Baseball in the Upper Midwest. However, more importantly Harmon's legacy will be the class, dignity and humility he demonstrated each and every day as a Hall of Fame-quality husband, father, friend, teammate and man. —Twins' President David St. Peter, Star Tribune