I grew up in a baseball loving family. My grandmother followed the Cincinnati Reds faithfully, attending as many games as she could and listening to the others on the radio. Her son, my father, wasn't quite as devoted, but even so, when I got my first radio I joined them. I can't count the number of times I fell asleep listening to the game, always enjoying the easy banter of Al Michaels and Joe Nuxhall, and always hoping I'd make it to hear Joe say, "This is the old lefthander, rounding third and heading for home", at the close of his post-game wrapup. With a few exceptions, baseball teams were like families then.

When the strikes began, and I began to see that dollars were more important than people and relationships, my interest declined. Yes, it was a myth that I'd loved, but even so it hurt to see it so callously punctured in the sports and business pages.

One person sparked a small resurgence of interest. That was Kirby Puckett. A short, squat man, he played the game beautifully despite having such an improbable physique for it. It wasn't how well he played that captured my attention, however—it was his way of being. He seemed to always have a smile on his face, was always positive and upbeat. And he seemed to genuinely love playing the game. He was gracious in victory as well as defeat. I began watching the Minnesota Twins just to see him. He became an inspiration, an unlikely role model for me.

Then the Twins discarded him, and I stopped following baseball altogether.

I did hear that he was voted into the Hall of Fame. But my disgust with baseball overshadowed my interest in individuals, and my memories of Kirby faded. Until today.

Kirby Puckett died yesterday after having a stroke Sunday. He was just 45 years old. It may seem silly to many of you, that I'm devoting so much time to an athlete, and struggling to see this screen through a blur of tears, but Mr. Puckett was much more than an athlete to me. His love of the game and his can-do attitude were both singular attributes in these cynical times; that he possessed both elevated him to top-notch status in my mind. My world is a little darker today ... but I'm happy to have had a wealth of memories returned to me; and I hope I can inspire just one person the way Kirby Puckett inspired me.