Anthony Kirby Puckett was born on the South Side of Chicago, the youngest of nine children born to William and Catherine Puckett. He grew up in the Robert Taylor Homes, a place known as “the place where hope goes to die.”

Growing up, he did not have the opportunity to play Little League Baseball, so he practiced constantly by drawing a strike zone out of chalk on the side of a building, then throwing the baseball repeatedly, trying to hit the strike zone, a game which is played by youth all across the nation.

Despite being an All-American at Calumet High School, he was constantly overlooked by pro scouts because he was “too small.” After high school, he was not offered the opportunity to play college or pro baseball, so he took a job on the assembly line at the Chicago Ford assembly plant.

One August day, he decided to attend a Kansas City Royals tryout camp nearby, one of 150 who showed up that day. While the Royals passed on him, the coach at nearby Bradley University was impressed by his defense and bat speed, so he offered a scholarship.

During his freshman year, he was showing signs of improvement, however that all changed after the death of his father. Following this, he left school for three weeks, and contemplated quitting baseball and returning home permanently to work in the auto industry. He decided to transfer to nearby Triton Junior College to be closer to home.

After hitting .472 with 16 homers in his final season at Triton, the Minnesota Twins drafted Kirby with the third pick in the 1982 January supplemental draft. He spent only two seasons in the Twins minor league system before making his major league debut on May 8, 1984 against the California Angels. He collected four hits that day, tying a major league record for most hits in a debut game. He would finish the season with a .296 batting average and 31 RBIs, earning him third place in the voting for American League Rookie of the Year.

In 1986, he had his breakout season, batting .326, and winning his first of six gold gloves in center field. His first World Series title came in 1987, when the Twins defeated the St. Louis Cardinals. The defining moment of his career came when he jumped the wall at the Metrodome in Game 6 of the 1991 World Series to rob Ron Gant of the Atlanta Braves of a home run, followed by a home run in extra innings of that same game.

He continued his career until September 1995 when he was hit in the face by a pitch thrown by Dennis Martinez. In March of 1996, just hours after collecting 2 hits off of Greg Maddux in a spring training game, he woke up with a black dot in one of his eyes. After the dot went away, his vision remained blurry. After numerous doctor’s visits and four laser eye surgeries, Kirby Puckett announced that he was retiring from baseball due to early onset glaucoma.

In 2001, he was elected to the Baseball Hall Of Fame on his first appearance on the ballot. In the following years, Kirby's one-time flawless public image would begin to take a major hit. In February 2002, his wife, Tonya, filed for divorce, claiming that Kirby physically and verbally abused her throughout their marriage, even threatening to kill her on several occasions.

Later that same year, he was arrested on charges of groping a woman in a bar restroom, to which he was later acquitted. In addition, there were several negative articles and reports coming out about Kirby's private life which included allegations of numerous extra-marital affairs, sexual misconduct, physical abuse, and lewd public behavior. To escape the burgeoning media backlash, Kirby, whose weight continued to balloon, decided to move to Arizona in the winter of 2003

He lived in Arizona quietly until March 5th 2006, when he suffered a massive stroke. He was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead less than 48 hours later. A public memorial was held the next week. Attendance was lower than expected due to a major snowstorm and the memorial being broadcast on local TV stations.

Puckett has been credited with mentoring current Twins Center Fielder Torii Hunter, who is expected to mentor other young outfielders in the Twins organization. Before the Twins moved to Target Field, the street in front of the Metrodome was named after him, a street that became filled with memorials to him in the days after his death.