Big first baseman Kent Hrbek was one of the games true characters, a throwback whose personal tastes were every bit as Ruthian as the monstrous homers for which he is remembered. At a time when
professional athletes were discovering the benefits of personal trainers and dieticians, he frequently expressed his preference for a diet of junk food and beer. He and teammates like Gary
Gaetti, Tom Brunansky, and late Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett played the game with a passion seldom seen in modern sports, and brought fun and humor into the Twins clubhouse. It was a place where
a manager had to ban the cleaning of fish in the trainers room, and where practical jokes were more commonplace than scouting reports. It wasnt all fun and games, however. Hrbek and Gaetti
became best friends, but had that friendship strained when Gaetti found religion and tried to push his beliefs including no beer onto Hrbek. Finally, late in his career, Hrbek battled serious
shoulder injuries before retiring.
