July 10, 2007
Breakfast with the Killer
Joe Christensen and a group of reporters sat down for breakfast with Harmon Killebrew yesterday to talk about Home Run Derby
.
Couple interesting notes: Killebrew said the winner of each one-on-one contest received $2,000. The runner-up received $1,000, and the players could make an additional $500 for hitting three homers in a row.
That might not sound like much by today's standards, but in 1959, the Washington Senators paid Killebrew $9,000. He said he worked in a men's clothing store in the offseason to help pay the bills. A different era, indeed.
"I haven't seen [the 'Home Run Derby' episodes] in years," Killebrew said. "So this is kind of fun to watch them again."
Somehow, they fit it into a half hour show.