"Killer" Killebrew takes himself out of life's lineup

In the 1970s, there was no greater slugger than the Twins' Harmon Killebrew. If memory serves, I saw him play against the Tigers and was disappointed that the big man didn't hit one out of the park. As a kid playing All Star Baseball (a well-worn board game), you always wanted Killebrew's card in your lineup because he had the largest home run zone.

I subjected my family to countless rounds of this game.

Killebrew, like Christopher Hitchens, has been battling esophageal cancer since December, but has decided that treatment is no longer effective. The All Star has taken himself out of the game to enter hospice.