Danny Thompson

The agile, sure-handed, and well-liked infielder played mostly second base when he came up in 1970 but became Minnesota’s regular shortstop in 1972. A contact hitter with alley power, Thompson led all regular ML shortstops that year with a .276 BA. Diagnosed as having leukemia before the 1973 season, he courageously played four more seasons, hitting .270 in 1975. He appeared in 98 games in 1976 and died that winter.