One of the all-time greats and nicest players. He died at only 54 of cancer from constantly chewing tobacco. A colleague died the same way. Probably not that unusual as the cause of death.

http://sports.yahoo.com/photos/remembering-baseball-hall-of-famer-tony-gwynn-1402932909-slideshow/

tenplay;842325097 said:

---

One of the all-time greats and nicest players. He died at only 54 of cancer from constantly chewing tobacco. A colleague died the same way. Probably not that unusual as the cause of death.

http://sports.yahoo.com/photos/remembering-baseball-hall-of-famer-tony-gwynn-1402932909-slideshow/

---

The best pure hitter I've seen since following baseball in the late '70s. The most he ever struck out in a season is 40. Amazing.

Gwynn went way too soon and way too young. Great player. How sad.

Are players still chewing tobacco, or is it a thing of the past? Jimmy Kelly isn't doing so well either after years of chewing tobacco. Both should be a warning to youngsters...that stuff kills.

The interesting thing about Gwynne as a great hitter is he didn't walk that much. Walked less than 50 times in a year he hit .394

I'd forgotten what a dominant hitter he was. Marvelous bat control. He also was a gold glove outfielder. Big loss for the game.

He was total CLASS!

Great player and (by all accounts) a great guy. Looked like he really enjoyed the game. What a shame he's gone so young.

I'm super sad about this. He was a hero to me and anyone in San Diego who liked baseball. I actually lived in his neighborhood when I was like 6 years old and didn't know it until I "met" him on Halloween at his front door. My brother and I rang the doorbell, his daughter (who was a little younger than me) answered, and immediately was shoved out of the way by her younger brother (Anthony "Tony" Gwynn, Jr.) who promptly slammed the door shut. We rang again, this time with the door opening and a struggle between the two siblings, when Tony can jogging around the corner and down the hallway to break them up. He spun Jr. around by the top of the head with a "get outta here" and then handed my bro and I some candy. I stammered something about thank you Mr. Gwynn, and when the door closed we looked at each other, screamed, and then ran straight home barging in the door yelling about how exciting it was that he lived down the street from us.

Super nice guy, amazing representative for the city. The fact that he remained in San Diego all those years turning down bigger free agent money just solidified how loyal he was. It's also pretty incredible that he was drafted by the SD Clippers and the Padres on the same day.

Vandalus;842325149 said:

---

I'm super sad about this. He was a hero to me and anyone in San Diego who liked baseball. I actually lived in his neighborhood when I was like 6 years old and didn't know it until I "met" him on Halloween at his front door. My brother and I rang the doorbell, his daughter (who was a little younger than me) answered, and immediately was shoved out of the way by her younger brother (Anthony "Tony" Gwynn, Jr.) who promptly slammed the door shut. We rang again, this time with the door opening and a struggle between the two siblings, when Tony can jogging around the corner and down the hallway to break them up. He spun Jr. around by the top of the head with a "get outta here" and then handed my bro and I some candy. I stammered something about thank you Mr. Gwynn, and when the door closed we looked at each other, screamed, and then ran straight home barging in the door yelling about how exciting it was that he lived down the street from us.

Super nice guy, amazing representative for the city. The fact that he remained in San Diego all those years turning down bigger free agent money just solidified how loyal he was. It's also pretty incredible that he was drafted by the SD Clippers and the Padres on the same day.

---

Great story!

Two of the purist hitters of our generation came out of that 1982 rookie class:






He was so locked in from 1994-1997.

1994: bats .394 (in 110 games but still gets 165 hits)
1995: bats .368 and gets 197 hits, 90 RBI
1996: he has a down season and hits a mere .353
1997: best year -- .372-17-119 (220 hits)

Who does this? Tony does.

What a fantastic hitter and an even better human being. True class (and that's from a Padre-hating Dodger fan). Sad to lose him so young.

Pretty amazing to think he was drafted in the NBA draft. Must have been a PG in the Burt Harris or Khalid El-Amin mold.

TheSouseFamily;842325372 said:

---

What a fantastic hitter and an even better human being. True class (and that's from a Padre-hating Dodger fan). Sad to lose him so young.

Pretty amazing to think he was drafted in the NBA draft. Must have been a PG in the Burt Harris or Khalid El-Amin mold.

---

Not to take away from his basketball skills, because apparently he was quite good - but this was a time when the NBA had many more rounds. I believe he was taken in the 10th round, 210 overall. The NBA now has maybe 60 picks.

I'd reiterate what you said (as a Giants fan) - I seriously don't think I've ever heard anyone say a bad thing about him. Class act. This post by Giants blogger Grant Brisbee sums it up well from an opponent-fan point of view:

http://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2014/6/16/5814608/tony-gwynn-passes-away


And this article, published just the day before he died, is terribly sad, in hindsight. Read it, then call your dad.

http://www.csnphilly.com/baseball-philadelphia-phillies/gwynn-men-sons-love-fathers-fight?utm_content=buffer63086&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Golfed with him in his later years. Class act.

Vandalus;842325149 said:

---

I'm super sad about this. He was a hero to me and anyone in San Diego who liked baseball. I actually lived in his neighborhood when I was like 6 years old and didn't know it until I "met" him on Halloween at his front door. My brother and I rang the doorbell, his daughter (who was a little younger than me) answered, and immediately was shoved out of the way by her younger brother (Anthony "Tony" Gwynn, Jr.) who promptly slammed the door shut. We rang again, this time with the door opening and a struggle between the two siblings, when Tony can jogging around the corner and down the hallway to break them up. He spun Jr. around by the top of the head with a "get outta here" and then handed my bro and I some candy. I stammered something about thank you Mr. Gwynn, and when the door closed we looked at each other, screamed, and then ran straight home barging in the door yelling about how exciting it was that he lived down the street from us.

Super nice guy, amazing representative for the city. The fact that he remained in San Diego all those years turning down bigger free agent money just solidified how loyal he was. It's also pretty incredible that he was drafted by the SD Clippers and the Padres on the same day.

---

Great story.

I'm a native San Diegan and growing up in the 80s and 90s this guy pretty much was San Diego sports. His loss hits pretty hard, but he will be remembered for what he gave the city, both as a player but also until the very end.

KoreAmBear;842325153 said:

---

Great story!

Two of the purist hitters of our generation came out of that 1982 rookie class:






He was so locked in from 1994-1997.

1994: bats .394 (in 110 games but still gets 165 hits)
1995: bats .368 and gets 197 hits, 90 RBI
1996: he has a down season and hits a mere .353
1997: best year -- .372-17-119 (220 hits)

Who does this? Tony does.

---

Also in that class was Ryne Sandberg (another HOF) .... Tony was one of the greatest dudes. No nonsense and straight up all the way. He would give you a hard time but always came through

I knew him well. We had many encounters and am proud to have been able to call him my friend

grandmastapoop;842325382 said:

---

Not to take away from his basketball skills, because apparently he was quite good - but this was a time when the NBA had many more rounds. I believe he was taken in the 10th round, 210 overall. The NBA now has maybe 60 picks.

I'd reiterate what you said (as a Giants fan) - I seriously don't think I've ever heard anyone say a bad thing about him. Class act. This post by Giants blogger Grant Brisbee sums it up well from an opponent-fan point of view:

http://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2014/6/16/5814608/tony-gwynn-passes-away


And this article, published just the day before he died, is terribly sad, in hindsight. Read it, then call your dad.

http://www.csnphilly.com/baseball-philadelphia-phillies/gwynn-men-sons-love-fathers-fight?utm_content=buffer63086&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

---

Grew up a Dodgers fan, loved Tony Gwynn, really wanted him to beat the Yankees in the WS in 98 I think the year was. He had serious wheels when he came up. Only time I saw a major leaguer steal home was when he did it v. Jerry Reuss, 1984 I think it was. RIP Mr. Padre, gone too soon.

Looperbear;842325489 said:

---

Grew up a Dodgers fan, loved Tony Gwynn, really wanted him to beat the Yankees in the WS in 98 I think the year was. He had serious wheels when he came up. Only time I saw a major leaguer steal home was when he did it v. Jerry Reuss, 1984 I think it was. RIP Mr. Padre, gone too soon.

---

He was a lot slimmer as a young player, had more speed on the bases and range in the outfield. That went away as he got older and heavier, but the hitting ability never did.

Just heard it said best, "A part of my childhood died on Monday." I remember looking forward to seeing the his box scores every day. Loved that man...Gwynn would have hit .400 every year if he was in the Boston lineup. Boggs had plenty of protection. Tony was in the middle of some horrible lineups.

Lot to easier to hit at Fenway and as a lefty at Yankee Stadium than Jack Murphy, too. Boggs has substantial home and away batting average splits (.354 home, .302 away), while Gwynn's home (.343) and away (.334) numbers are fairly close.

Interestingly, both Hank Aaron and Willie Mays had virtually identical home/away splits. They were great everywhere.

bearlybobo;842325811 said:

---

Lot to easier to hit at Fenway and as a lefty at Yankee Stadium than Jack Murphy, too. Boggs has substantial home and away batting average splits (.354 home, .302 away), while Gwynn's home (.343) and away (.334) numbers are fairly close.

Interestingly, both Hank Aaron and Willie Mays had virtually identical home/away splits. They were great everywhere.

---

In two-strike counts, Gwynn hit .302. Wade Boggs is next at .260. Unfortunately, records only go back to 1988, but still - among his contemporaries, that's a pretty incredible statistic.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/play-index/share.cgi?id=8mAlG

Vandalus;842325835 said:

---

In two-strike counts, Gwynn hit .302. Wade Boggs is next at .260. Unfortunately, records only go back to 1988, but still - among his contemporaries, that's a pretty incredible statistic.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/play-index/share.cgi?id=8mAlG

---

It's interesting how the memory tricks us. I was sure looking at that list I'd see Manny who I always thought a great two strike hitter but he wasn't really. He was just the best ever two strike home run hitter

Suggest all Tony Gwynn fans read the Deadspin.com piece today "I was Tony Gwynn's Bat Boy." Warning. You will be teary eyed...

Yeah, saw that yesterday, good one.

http://deadspin.com/i-was-tony-gwynns-bat-boy-1592123043

Also, love or hate Olbermann, his video piece is awesome, highly recommended.



I don't think I've ever seen such consistent commentary about one guy in a long time, there must be at least 20 or 30 reporters with similar stories. Mr. Padre will definitely be missed.

I forgot about the Green Monster @ Fenway. Gwynn might have averaged 60 doubles/year if he played there...not fair to the pitchers. He was also a career .444 hitter with the bases loaded (that's over 20 seasons).

When I was getting recruited by SDSU in the early 90's, the coach had Gwynn sign some posters and cards for me. I'm not sure if it was legal, but it was freakin' awesome! Can't believe he would do that for an 18 year old cocky idiot like myself. I went to Cal anyways but felt a little guilty.