Kirby Puckett | Baseball Prospectus

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Kirby Puckett Twins

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Career Summary

Years	PA	AVG	OBP	SLG	TAv	WARP
12	7831	.318	.360	.477	.290	51.2

Birth Date	3-14-1960
Height	5' 8"
Weight	210 lbs

Bats	R
Throws	R

WARP Summary

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YEAR	TEAM	AGE	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	TB	BB	SO	HBP	SF	SH	RBI	SB	CS	AVG	OBP	SLG	TAv	VORP	FRAA	WARP
1984	MIN	24	128	583	557	63	165	12	5	0	187	16	69	4	2	4	31	14	7	.296	.320	.336	.236	4.6	25.8	3.3
1985	MIN	25	161	744	691	80	199	29	13	4	266	41	87	4	3	5	74	21	12	.288	.330	.385	.256	20.4	5.1	2.7
1986	MIN	26	161	723	680	119	223	37	6	31	365	34	99	7	0	2	96	20	12	.328	.366	.537	.307	59.1	-5.2	5.6
1987	MIN	27	157	668	624	96	207	32	5	28	333	32	91	6	6	0	99	12	7	.332	.367	.534	.297	45.7	-5.9	4.0
1988	MIN	28	158	691	657	109	234	42	5	24	358	23	83	2	9	0	121	6	7	.356	.375	.545	.326	69.5	7.4	8.4
1989	MIN	29	159	684	635	75	215	45	4	9	295	41	59	3	5	0	85	11	4	.339	.379	.465	.294	40.1	4.8	4.9
1990	MIN	30	146	615	551	82	164	40	3	12	246	57	73	3	3	1	80	5	4	.298	.365	.446	.285	31.9	-3.4	3.0
1991	MIN	31	152	661	611	92	195	29	6	15	281	31	78	4	7	8	89	11	5	.319	.352	.460	.285	36.5	-1.9	3.7
1992	MIN	32	160	696	639	104	210	38	4	19	313	44	97	6	6	1	110	17	7	.329	.374	.490	.313	58.3	5.7	7.0
1993	MIN	33	156	682	622	89	184	39	3	22	295	47	93	7	5	1	89	8	6	.296	.349	.474	.289	40.0	-7.9	3.2
1994	MIN	34	108	482	439	79	139	32	3	20	237	28	47	7	7	1	112	6	3	.317	.362	.540	.295	32.5	-3.6	2.8
1995	MIN	35	137	602	538	83	169	39	0	23	277	56	89	3	5	0	99	3	2	.314	.379	.515	.295	32.7	-5.5	2.6
Career			1783	7831	7244	1071	2304	414	57	207	3453	450	965	56	58	23	1085	134	76	.318	.360	.477	.290	471.4	15.1	51.2

Advanced

'opp' stats - quality of opponents faced - have been moved and are available only as OPP_QUAL in the Statistics reports now.

YEAR	Team	Lg	G	PA	TAv	oppAVG	oppOBP	oppSLG	oppTAv	BABIP	BPF	BRAA	repLVL	POS_ADJ	FRAA	BRR	BVORP	BWARP	VORP	WARP
1982	ELZ	Rk	65	305	.000	.000	.000	.000	.000	.415			0.0		0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
1983	VIS	A+	138	604	.000	.000	.000	.000	.000	.340			0.0		0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
1984	MIN	MLB	128	583	.236	.260	.318	.393	.000	.337	99	-13.8	15.6	1.4	25.8	1.1	4.6	3.3	4.6	3.3
1984	TOL	AAA	21	87	.000	.000	.000	.000	.000	.299			0.0		0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0
1985	MIN	MLB	161	744	.256	.259	.321	.400	.000	.323	101	-2.6	20.3	1.8	5.1	-0.4	20.4	2.7	20.4	2.7
1986	MIN	MLB	161	723	.307	.254	.320	.397	.000	.349	107	34.7	20.0	1.8	-5.2	1.6	59.1	5.6	59.1	5.6
1987	MIN	MLB	157	668	.297	.258	.322	.413	.000	.350	104	26.6	19.7	1.1	-5.9	-0.4	45.7	4.0	45.7	4.0
1988	MIN	MLB	158	691	.326	.257	.316	.385	.000	.376	104	43.8	18.1	1.6	7.4	-0.3	69.5	8.4	69.5	8.4
1989	MIN	MLB	159	684	.294	.258	.318	.376	.000	.360	105	22.6	17.9	1.5	4.8	-1.7	40.1	4.9	40.1	4.9
1990	MIN	MLB	146	615	.285	.256	.320	.381	.000	.324	103	15	16.5	0.4	-3.4	0.4	31.9	3.0	31.9	3.0
1991	MIN	MLB	152	661	.285	.256	.321	.385	.000	.343	105	16.5	17.9	1.1	-1.9	-1.9	36.5	3.7	36.5	3.7
1992	MIN	MLB	160	696	.313	.256	.320	.379	.000	.361	101	35.7	18.0	0.9	5.7	5.0	58.3	7.0	58.3	7.0
1993	MIN	MLB	156	682	.289	.262	.326	.401	.000	.316	100	21.1	19.6	-2.4	-7.9	1.9	40.0	3.2	40.0	3.2
1994	MIN	MLB	108	482	.295	.268	.333	.422	.000	.314	103	19.1	14.6	-5.9	-3.6	0.3	32.5	2.8	32.5	2.8
1995	MIN	MLB	137	602	.295	.265	.335	.412	.000	.339	104	23.5	18.0	-7.4	-5.5	-2.6	32.7	2.6	32.7	2.6
Career		MLB		7831	.290	.259	.322	.395	.260	.342	103	242.2	216.2	-4.1	15.1	3.0	471.4	51.2	471.4	51.2

Statistics For All Levels

Year	Team	Lg	PA	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SO	SB	CS	AVG	OBP	SLG	ISO	TAv	VORP	FRAA	WARP
1982	ELZ	Rk	305	65	105	15	3	3	35	25	27	43	4	.382	.438	.491	.109	.000	0.0	0.0	0.0
1983	VIS	A+	604	105	172	29	7	9	97	46	62	48	11	.314	.367	.442	.128	.000	0.0	0.0	0.0
1984	TOL	AAA	87	9	21	2	0	1	5	4	14	8	2	.263	.291	.325	.062	.000	0.0	0.0	0.0
1984	MIN	MLB	583	63	165	12	5	0	31	16	69	14	7	.296	.320	.336	.039	.236	4.6	25.8	3.3
1985	MIN	MLB	744	80	199	29	13	4	74	41	87	21	12	.288	.330	.385	.097	.256	20.4	5.1	2.7
1986	MIN	MLB	723	119	223	37	6	31	96	34	99	20	12	.328	.366	.537	.209	.307	59.1	-5.2	5.6
1987	MIN	MLB	668	96	207	32	5	28	99	32	91	12	7	.332	.367	.534	.202	.297	45.7	-5.9	4.0
1988	MIN	MLB	691	109	234	42	5	24	121	23	83	6	7	.356	.375	.545	.189	.326	69.5	7.4	8.4
1989	MIN	MLB	684	75	215	45	4	9	85	41	59	11	4	.339	.379	.465	.126	.294	40.1	4.8	4.9
1990	MIN	MLB	615	82	164	40	3	12	80	57	73	5	4	.298	.365	.446	.149	.285	31.9	-3.4	3.0
1991	MIN	MLB	661	92	195	29	6	15	89	31	78	11	5	.319	.352	.460	.141	.285	36.5	-1.9	3.7
1992	MIN	MLB	696	104	210	38	4	19	110	44	97	17	7	.329	.374	.490	.161	.313	58.3	5.7	7.0
1993	MIN	MLB	682	89	184	39	3	22	89	47	93	8	6	.296	.349	.474	.178	.289	40.0	-7.9	3.2
1994	MIN	MLB	482	79	139	32	3	20	112	28	47	6	3	.317	.362	.540	.223	.295	32.5	-3.6	2.8
1995	MIN	MLB	602	83	169	39	0	23	99	56	89	3	2	.314	.379	.515	.201	.295	32.7	-5.5	2.6

Injury History beta

Date On	Date Off	Transaction	Days	Games	Side	Body Part	Injury	Severity	Surgery Date	Reaggravation
1997-04-01	1997-09-28	60-DL	180	161	-		Recovery From Surgery	Glaucoma	-	-
1996-04-01	1996-09-30	60-DL	182	162	-		Surgery	Glaucoma	-	-
1995-09-29	1995-10-02	DTD	3	3	-	Face	Fracture	Jaw HBP	-	-

Compensation

Year	Team	Salary
1997	MIN	$7,200,000
1996	MIN	$6,200,000
1995	MIN	$6,200,000
1994	MIN	$5,200,000
1993	MIN	$5,200,000
1992	MIN	$3,300,000
1991	MIN	$3,000,000
1990	MIN	$2,700,000
1989	MIN	$2,050,000
1988	MIN	$1,210,000
1987	MIN	$465,000
1986	MIN	$265,000
1985	MIN	$130,000
1984	MIN	$50,000

Years	Description	Salary
14 yr	Previous	$43,170,000
14 yr	Total	$43,170,000

Service Time	Agent	Contract Status
	Ron Shapiro

Details

5 years/$30M (1993-97). Re-signed by Minnesota as a free agent 12/5/92. $6M signing bonus. 93:$4M, 94:$4M, 95:$5M, 96:$5M, 97:$6M. Puckett may opt out of contract after 1995 season. Retired 7/13/96.
3 years/$9M (1990-92). Re-signed with Minnesota 11/23/89. $1.5M signing bonus (paid in $0.5M installments: 11/89, 12/90, 12/91). 90:$2.2M, 91:$2.5M, 92:$2.8M. Award bonuses: $0.2M MVP. $0.1M for second or third in MVP vote. $25,000 for Gold Glove. Limited no-trade protection (may block deals to three clubs). First player to reach $3M mark in average annual value.
1 year/$2.05M (1989).
1 year/$1.21M (1988)
1 year/$0.465M (1987)
1 year/$0.265M (1986)
1 year/$0.13M (1985)
1 year/$50,000 (1984)
Drafted by Minnesota 1982 (1-3) (January draft) (Bradley University).

BP Annual Player Comments

No BP Book Comments have been found for this player.

BP Articles

Kirby Puckett is referenced in the following articles.

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Title	Author	Date
Raising Aces: The Ghost of Articles Past	Doug Thorburn	2012-12-28
The Lineup Card: 9 Winter Meetings Memories	Baseball Prospectus	2012-12-05
Pebble Hunting: A Hall of Fame Brochure for Ryan Klesko	Sam Miller	2012-12-03
The Lineup Card: 11 Memories From Watching Our First World Series	Baseball Prospectus	2012-10-24
The Platoon Advantage: Is 12 Enough for Ichiro?	Michael Bates	2012-09-26
The Platoon Advantage: Plunk Cost	Bill Parker	2012-08-22
BP Unfiltered: MVPs Who Weren't All-Stars	Ben Lindbergh	2012-07-12
Inside The Park: About Big Threes in Baseball	Bradford Doolittle	2012-05-24
The Lineup Card: 10 Most Disappointing Career-Ending Injuries	Baseball Prospectus	2012-05-09
Baseball ProGUESTus: The Tensest Series of All Time	Dave Studeman	2012-04-03
Prospectus Hit and Run: Big Shoes to Fill	Jay Jaffe	2012-02-24
Prospectus Hit and Run: The Greatness of Gary Carter	Jay Jaffe	2012-02-17
The Lineup Card: 11 Times Small Sample Sizes Steered Us Wrong	Baseball Prospectus	2012-02-07
The BP Broadside: Who Cares if the Tigers Got Fat?	Steven Goldman	2012-01-27
The Platoon Advantage: TwinsFest Cognitive Dissonance	Bill Parker	2012-01-25
Heartburn Hardball: Jack Morris in Motion	Jonathan Bernhardt	2012-01-13
The Lineup Card: 9 Memories of Frank Viola	Baseball Prospectus	2011-12-14
World Series Prospectus: Game Six: The Crazy Train Keeps Rolling	Jay Jaffe	2011-10-28
Prospectus Hit and Run: Beltran and Damon	Jay Jaffe	2011-07-29
Divide and Conquer, NL West: Like Cats Approaching a Stream	Geoff Young	2011-06-23
The BP Broadside: What the Heck is an RBI Whore?	Steven Goldman	2011-05-27
The BP Broadside: The Annotated WARP Leaders	Steven Goldman	2011-05-23
You Can Blog It Up: Peace Be With You, Harmon Killebrew (Sadly Updated)	Steven Goldman	2011-05-17
Wezen-Ball: Baseball When You're 10	Larry Granillo	2011-04-12
Spitballing: Trading Places	Jeremy Greenhouse	2011-04-07
Changing Speeds: The Next Jose Bautista	Ken Funck	2011-02-08
Spinning Yarn: The Forkball	Mike Fast	2010-12-09
World Series Prospectus: Fall Classic Memories	Baseball Prospectus	2010-10-27
Playoff Prospectus: Home Sweet Dome No More	Brandon Warne	2010-10-06
Prospectus Perspective: A Trip to Target Field	Jay Jaffe	2010-08-25
Prospectus Hit and Run: If Hawk, Then Rock	Jay Jaffe	2010-07-23
Prospectus Hit List: Nearing the Cliff	Jay Jaffe	2010-07-09
Seidnotes: The .300/.500 Club	Eric Seidman	2010-06-11
BP Unfiltered: The Ultimate Late Bloomer	John Perrotto	2010-04-15
One-Hoppers: Willie Davis (1940-2010)	Jay Jaffe	2010-03-17
Player Profile: Frank Thomas	Marc Normandin	2010-02-18
Prospectus Hit and Run: O-Dog Waits, Edmonds Campaigns	Jay Jaffe	2010-01-22
The Week In Quotes: January 4-10	Alex Carnevale	2010-01-11
Prospectus Hit and Run: Hawk, Rock, and a Couple of Shocks	Jay Jaffe	2010-01-07
On the Beat: Mr. October 2.0	John Perrotto	2009-11-03
Prospectus Today: Back from the Future	Joe Sheehan	2009-10-28
Kiss'Em Goodbye: Minnesota Twins	Baseball Prospectus	2009-10-13
Prospectus Q&A: Jack Cust	David Laurila	2009-08-23
Prospectus Idol Entry: The Little Big Man Awards	Ken Funck	2009-06-21
Prospectus Idol Entry: The 1991 World Series: An Adventure in Championship Expectancy	Matt Swartz	2009-06-21
Under The Knife: Does This Projection Make Me Look Fat?	Will Carroll	2009-03-26
Prospectus Today: The Old You're In, You're Out	Joe Sheehan	2008-12-18
Prospectus Audio Q&A: Bob Costas	Will Carroll	2008-11-06
Prospectus Preview: World Series Game Two	Caleb Peiffer	2008-10-23
You Could Look It Up: Love in the Temperate Zone, Part One	Steven Goldman	2008-09-09
Every Given Sunday: Chasing Four-Tenths	John Perrotto	2008-05-11
Prospectus Hit List: Walking a Fine Line	Jay Jaffe	2008-05-09
Lies, Damned Lies: The Age of Suspicion	Nate Silver	2008-04-25
Schrodinger's Bat: Clearing the Decks	Dan Fox	2008-03-20
Doctoring The Numbers: Mariners, Braves, and Diamondbacks	Rany Jazayerli	2008-02-20
Doctoring The Numbers: Mets, Rangers, and Orioles	Rany Jazayerli	2008-02-13
Future Shock: Astros Top 11 Prospects	Kevin Goldstein	2008-01-28
Prospectus Today: The Twins Spend Money	Joe Sheehan	2008-01-27
Prospectus Hit and Run: Dissecting the 2008 Hall of Fame Vote	Jay Jaffe	2008-01-09
Prospectus Q&A: Tim Raines	David Laurila	2007-08-19
Prospectus Today: So Wang He's Right, and Mr. Roberts	Joe Sheehan	2007-07-10
Prospectus Today: Back Home Again	Joe Sheehan	2007-03-23
Prospectus Matchups: Discount Division Winners	Jim Baker	2007-03-02
Prospectus Today: Gold Gloves in February	Joe Sheehan	2007-02-27
The Week In Quotes: January 16-22	Alex Carnevale	2007-01-22
Prospectus Today: Two Fortysomething Ex-Yankees	Joe Sheehan	2007-01-10
The Class of 2007: The Hitters, Part Two	Jay Jaffe	2007-01-08
Prospectus Today: Division Series, Day Two	Joe Sheehan	2006-10-05
Prospectus Matchups: More Than Their Fair Share	Jim Baker	2006-09-19
Schrodinger's Bat: The Curious Case of Mark Teahen	Dan Fox	2006-08-31
Future Shock: Monday Morning Ten-Pack 7/31/06	Kevin Goldstein	2006-07-31
Eric Gregg: 1951-2006	Jay Jaffe	2006-06-09
Under The Knife: Injuries and Taxes	Will Carroll	2006-04-18
Prospectus Today: Kirby	Joe Sheehan	2006-03-07
Under The Knife: The Swallows of Vero Beach	Will Carroll	2006-03-06
The Class of 2006: The Hitters	Jay Jaffe	2005-12-12
Prospectus Matchups: Welcome Freshmen	Jim Baker	2005-11-29
Prospectus Today: Not Dead Yet	Joe Sheehan	2005-10-18
Prospectus Matchups: 40-40, and 20	Jim Baker	2005-09-13
Prospectus Matchups: Celebrating the Sinister	Jim Baker	2005-08-16
Prospectus Triple Play: Baltimore Orioles, Colorado Rockies, New York Mets	Baseball Prospectus	2005-04-26
Prospectus Matchups: The Class of '05	Jim Baker	2004-11-30
Teams: A Critical Guide: American League, September 13-19	Steven Goldman	2004-09-25
You Could Look It Up: What's the Value of a Deadline Deal?	Steven Goldman	2004-08-06
Lies, Damned Lies: Making RBIs Useful	Nate Silver	2004-04-28
Prospectus Today: The Anderson Deal	Joe Sheehan	2004-04-15
You Could Look It Up: 1984 Part III: Ghostbusters	Steven Goldman	2004-02-19
Prospectus Q&A: Paul Dickson	Peter Schilling Jr.	2003-07-18
Prospectus Today: All-Star Diary	Joe Sheehan	2003-07-16
Prospectus Feature: 2003 IHOF Veterans Committee Results	Neal Traven	2003-02-26
2003 IHOF Veterans Committee Results: Your picks for the STATLG-L Hall of Fame	Neal Traven	2003-02-26
STATLG-L Hall of Fame Results: Sorting the Ballots	Neal Traven	2003-02-25
From The Mailbag: Barry Bonds, the AFL, and Bob Klapisch Responds	Baseball Prospectus	2002-11-15
The Week In Quotes: September 30-October 6	Derek Zumsteg	2002-10-07
Prospectus Feature: Jose Canseco and the Keltner List	Ryan Wilkins	2002-05-23
Not Getting His Due: One Player Who's Been Overlooked in the HOF Discussion	Michael Wolverton	2001-01-19
Hall Of Fame Roundtable: Commentary on this year's candidates	Christina Kahrl	2000-11-30
Hall Of Fame Roundtable: Commentary on this year's candidates	Gary Huckabay	2000-11-30

BP Chats

Date	Question	Answer
2011-06-20 14:00:00	Kirby Puckett is what I base that on. And Koufax, too, now that you bring him up. Does JAWS account for people being stopped right in their prime? I'm guessing not, perhaps because there are so few. But are there comparables to Kirby and Doc who didn't make it? I suspect there's just such a strong psychological at play there for voters. (Richie from Washington)	Puckett had two World Series rings and 10 straight All-star appearances. As good as Halladay is, he doesn't have that. Now, by considering peak and career, JAWS is built to allow for stopped-in-prime comparisons, and yes, Halladay is above the standard on that front (49.1 peak, with the average SP at 47.7). There aren't a lot of voters basing their decisions on JAWS, though - the great majority are still paying heed to more traditional numbers. The annals are full of fast-starting pitchers who didn't make the Hall along the lines of Gooden. Denny McLain won his second Cy at 25 and didn't get in. Bret Saberhagen has two Cy Youngs and won't get in. Johan Santana probably won't get in barring a miraculous comeback from shoulder woes. (Jay Jaffe)
2008-09-16 13:00:00	Was their ever a player with more of a stocky build than Hack Wilson? He looks ridiculous! (Rob from Bloomington, IL)	In my book "Forging Genius," I said that Hack looked like Popeye or an inverted bowling pin. I don't think Yogi Berra was too different, maybe even Kirby Puckett. Ever see the pictures of Wilson standing next to Ruth and Gehrig? Looks like they're hanging out with someone from a circus sideshow. They tower over him. (Steven Goldman)

BP Roundtables

Date	Roundtable Name	Comment
2009-10-28 17:00:00	2009 WS Game One	Does Chase Utley have a car dealership? He looks like that kind of guy, like John Elway. With this economy, what's the equivalent of the car dealership for athletes now, or do they even need it with their contracts? There's an interesting sociological question - where are the guys who signed the biggest contract of their day? Ryne Sandberg is a minor league manager. Kirby Puckett has passed, but would surely be in the Twins org doing something. Who else? (Will Carroll)