Correction: 1947 not 1945 for Jackie Robinson’s first MLB season. On baseball reference I forgot they include Negro League stats so I saw the first year and went for it 😂

@melreslor2114

11 ай бұрын

MVP in 3rd season, 1949

@joshuacastaldi

11 ай бұрын

Just wanted to clear out that the "Mr. Padre" Statue of Tony Gwynn was not built 2 years after his passing, it was built in 2007, the same year he was inducted, people gathered at the statue the same day he died during and after the game to give his respects and bring flowers, i was there that day, you could also see a "19" light hanging from a window in an appartment of a building in the skyline across centerfield, the giant screen zoomed on it for all the fans to watch and at the end of the game, they played "My way" from Frank Sinatra along with Tony Gwynn's career highlights.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

@@joshuacastaldi I believe what I read during research was a statue in his home community in Ponway. So a totally different statue but originally appeared as if it was @ Petco. Interesting!

@joshuacastaldi

11 ай бұрын

@@Cam23 Ohh yeah, the Tony Gwynn Memorial on Poway was unveiled in 2017 in the day that would have been his 57th birth day, in this one he is wearing a baseball uniform and raising his helmet with his left hand (He was left handed) as he used to do acknowledging the fans, while also holding a kid in his right arm, signifing the lifetime contributions to his community

@slimmyhendrix94

11 ай бұрын

@@joshuacastalditony gwynn historian

Tony wore pitchers out. He would foul off until he got his pitch, working them well into the count. He had some of the longest at bats I ever saw.

Tony gwynn had such a good grasp of hitting that his physical ailments couldn't even slow him down.

@SpaceMonkey8

10 ай бұрын

Could’ve gone without this sugarcoated turd 💩 of a comment.

Out of the dozens of Hall of Famers I've met, Gwynn ws BY FAR the nicest I ever met. It was his induction weekend 2007. Most players drive or walk by you and you'll get a wave at most. Ryne Sandberg usually signed and talked with fans, but that was it really as far as consistently friendly Hall members. But Gwynn stopped by, signed for all roughly 40 fans, talked with us, and even joked with me. I made a comment about hitting 20 seasons about 300, and he said he only hit 19 above 300, but he was willing to take the 20 season total if I was crediting him with it. It's a shame he died so young. Guys like Randy Johnson won't even look in the fans' directions, let alone stop and talk with people. These days, if you want an autograph at Cooperstown, you're going to probably pay a few hundred bucks (the cheapest autos last year was non-HOFer Dwight Gooden for $20 or $25), with Jeter and Mo costing you $300 a piece. Gwynn was the perfect face of baseball for fans. I hope people remember him as not only a one-of-a-kind player who was a dominant contact hitter, but as a great dude as well.

Ultimate hitter and Ultimate person. He will be missed. RIP Mr Gwynn.

As a young boy growing up in Peoria,Az in the early years we did not have a baseball team yet in AZ, I grew up watching Tony Gwynn at Peoria sports complex and had the absolute privilege to watch mr padre hit and met him multiple times, in my eyes he is the greatest hitter I’ve ever seen but an even better human, so polite and respectful to all around him , class act all the way

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Considering how great of a player he was, that speaks volumes as to the kind of guy he was!

After doing Boggs and Gwynn, staying on the subject of ridiculously high average hitters who don't get enough KZread love, you should do one on Rod Carew.

@yappers2011

11 ай бұрын

Got mad hits like I was Rod Carew

@Chili-su3mm

11 ай бұрын

This is a good idea

@dukedematteo1995

11 ай бұрын

As someone pointed out....Boggs was a bit of Fenway Park creation. He hit .360 there.

@sheawhitey5009

11 ай бұрын

Rod Carew was. AWESOME

@damon2455

11 ай бұрын

Pleasee

Tony Gwynn is, without a doubt, one of the greatest hitters of his time. I will always remember that scorching 2 run double in Game 5 of the 1984 NLCS, the no-doubt moonshot in the 1998 WS, and the back-to-back-to-back homers early in the 1987 season (Marvell Wynne, Tony Gwynn, and John Kruk would hit 'em). I obtained my bachelor's degree the same day he got his 3,000th hit as well. And to borrow an expression used by longtime Padres broadcaster, Jerry Coleman, Gwynn's career...you can hang a star on that baby.

Tony Gwynn coached my step brother at SDSU and he mentioned but just how good of a person he was outside of the game. His talent, who he was as a person, and just how humble he was will never be matched.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

That’s really cool! And you’re absolutely right. There’s only one Tony!

There weren't as many games on TV when I was a kid, and I remember watching baseball with my dad and my uncles. One of the very few players they'd actually quiet down to watch hit was Tony Gwynn.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

There’s always one player we drop everything we’re doing to watch them hit!

Tony Gwynn was the Absolute best hitter I have ever seen. Plus he was a First Class person. Nobody that knew could say a bad word about him. I’m a Braves fan nothing but high praise for Mr Gwynn . RIP for one of the All Time greatest hitters. I wished Tony would have won a World Series

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Even if you weren’t a Padres fan you could only root for him!

@cappy2282

9 ай бұрын

Ya I'm Yankees fan but even as a little kid I was like; "That Tony guy is the best!" Lol

There is a player right now this year that reminds me so much of Tony Gwynn. His name? luis Arraez and in 60 games he has a .950 OPS despite only hitting 1 home run and is hitting .402 in that stretch. Its been remarkable to watch!

@THERetro_Savage

9 ай бұрын

Yeah he's gonna win alot of batting titles

That homer off of Wells in game 1 of the 1998 World Series was one of the most incredible no doubt shots I’ve ever seen. RIP Tony, a legend and a truly good man.

@dukedematteo1995

11 ай бұрын

It was a statement HR. "I'm here, this is my team, and I'll show the world who Tony Gwynn is on this stage by doing something I normally don't"

@SPORTY1904

9 ай бұрын

B that was 🔥

One of my fondest childhood memories was when me and my family went to a Cape Cod League baseball game. Tony Gwynn Jr. was playing and Tony was there too. He signed baseballs for me and my siblings and cousins. He was extremely gracious to us all. Great player and great guy. RIP

Also, in 1994, Matt Williams had 43 HR's and got cut short of trying for Maris' record.

I grew up in San Diego during the late 80's and 90's. I feel so fortunate to have been able to watch him play. One of most satisfying things was watching Tony come up to the plate in clutch situations. He had this incredible ability to seemingly always deliver whenever we needed a clutch hit to drive in one or more runs. It seemed like he NEVER failed in those situations, and it didn't matter if it was against a right or left handed pitcher. It didn't even matter if the pitcher got 2 strikes on Tony. 2 strikes did not bother Tony at all, in fact he somehow seemed to get even better with 2 strikes on him. Tony was the greatest.

1994 was such a heart breaker. I have no doubt he was going to hit .400 that year.

I rememeber watching Boggs in the AL and Gwynn in the NL, and when the 90's came around it seemed as though Gwynn got even better. Boggs was still great even after the trade to the Yankees, but Gwynn kept winning batting crowns. I thought Gwynn was robbed in 1993, when the expansion year of the Rockies at Coors Field helped out Andres Galarraga who had never hit that high. But yea 8 Batting Crowns, you won't see that many ball players hit over .350 in a season again, and he did it seven times.

ESPN documentary quality, man. Incredible

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Thank you Hatbilly for the kind words!

Beast. My grandpa always said.."you watch Tony Gwynn, that's how you swing the bat..." P.S. I can only imagine how great of a DH he would've been.

One of the all-time Greats. I was priviledged to have seen him in his prime. Rest in Peace Mr. Padre.

Crazy how he got to the 3,000 hit club despite all those injuries. It goes to show dominant he was when on the field. I gotta say, that one shot of him chewing tobacco earlier in the video bummed me out, knowing that it in the process of slowly killing him. That was nine years ago today we lost him.

I'm glad I got to see him play and meet him when I was 15 at a card show in Houston in 1990. He would always be my favorite player after that even though I was a Astros fan

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

I’m jealous! I wish I could’ve seen Mr. Padre in action, but even still it’s an incredible experience just learning about him.

I miss one-team lifers. Not talking about reserve clause era guys, I'm talking '80s and '90s when players could choose to leave, but didn't, and teams could afford to keep them around, even the small market teams. Examples, Gwynn in San Diego, Brett in Kansas City, Yount in Milwaukee, Puckett and Hrbek in Minnesota, Larkin in Cincinnati, Whitaker and Trammell in Detroit, Edgar in Seattle, Biggio and Bagwell in Houston, Chipper in Atlanta, Schmidt in Philadelphia, Ripken in Baltimore, etc. It befuddles me that people criticize Mike Trout for wanting to do this in Anaheim instead of ring chasing.

@riltalk4055

11 ай бұрын

I think it’s admirable for a player to stay on one team in this day and age but I can’t blame them for leaving to explore other opportunities. Outside of Edgar Martinez, all of the players you mentioned, at minimum played in or won a World Series. Trout has played in one postseason series in his 13 seasons. He obviously has no control over who performs well but I wouldn’t fault him for wanting to win elsewhere.

@big8dog887

11 ай бұрын

@@riltalk4055 I wouldn't either really, but if you read KZread comments, people are faulting him for staying in Anaheim, which to me isn't right either. Any athlete in any sport wants to win a championship, the difference is that the mentality used to be that they wanted to bring one home, not go out and get one. Also, to be clear, this isn't all on the players, the teams these days are too anxious to dump veterans in the name of payroll efficiency. Take the Rays for example. Very well run organization, they contend every year on a limited budget, but they don't keep anyone around for very long to build ties to the community, so as a Rays fan, you're left rooting for the uniforms, not the people in them, which isn't a very appealing way to sell a team or a sport.

I knew Tony. He’s an awesome human being. Allowed me in his home and his wife is an amazing cook. I miss him and his family. I still have "HOF 07" signed authentic retro Padres jerseys, home and away. He even got us front row tickets to see Strausberg at SDSU. He was more than a great player. He was a great human.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Holy smokes that’s awesome! I’m a little jealous though 😉 although I did get to meet him before he passed. He was signing at Cashman Field in Vegas. Truly terrific guy!

Great video. I grew up in SD while Gwynn was playing. He was one of my role models; not only because of his talent but because of his perseverance, determination, and hard work, all while he had a smile on his face. Thank you for the video. I never met him but I still miss that man to this day.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

He had attributes that we should all aspire to have. I'm glad you enjoyed the video!

Born in SD in 79 so I was fortunate to see it all. He will never be forgotten here in San Diego. He was a Legendary Great Guy😅

Grew up watching Tony Gwynn live, a lot, in San Diego. Loved him. RIP.

You can find out what a man values by knowing his heroes. The sheer reverence he afforded the greatest hitter of all time, Ted Williams, at the 1999 All-Star game told you everything you needed to know about Gwynn even if you never saw him take a single swing of the bat.

I moved to Vegas from Memphis in 1981 as a kid. We were a family of STL fans but with no cable games then, only Dodgers or Padres on the AM, I became a Padres fan just in time to watch his whole career. Stationed in SD in the 90s it was a real privilege to watch him play in person so often. He will always be my all time favorite player. I got to meet him a few times in the 2000s, my mother in law was heavily involved in charities in the SD area. Everything you hear about his kindness and humbleness is no exaggeration. He was easily as good a person as he was a player. I can’t help but wonder what he’d have been without the injuries though.

Tony Gwynn was a true MASTER. I got to see a lot of him during my summers in San Diego as a kid. Im also from L.A. and Long Beach and a born and raised Dodgers fan. Salute Tony! I think i have some valuable cards of his as well.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

That’s super cool!

R.I.P. Tony Gwynn

One of my favorite in-person sports memory is seeing him, with my dad, go 5-5 at Shea in that magical ’94 season

One of the greatest hitters ever and gone way too soon! R.I.P Tony Gwynn aka Mr. Padre! ⚾️

Favorite player to go back and watch video on. Mr.Padre for life! Miss that guy

Thank you, this was really enjoyable and well done. I grew up in the 80s/90s in SD with Gwynn's posters all over my wall and it's impossible to overstate just how much he meant to Padres fans in that era. Even though the team itself was often mediocre if not outright terrible we still felt lucky to watch a living legend on our team for 20 years when he could've easily had far more fame, money, and chances at a World Series ring with a bigger market team. I remember watching the 98 Pads/Yanks WS and not even being that upset we got spanked in 4 games. An all-time goliath Yankee team dominated the Padres but Gwynn was completely unfazed by them and shined on a national stage with a .500 BA and only 1 strikeout In 4 games. That felt like a victory in itself for a lot of Padres fans.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Thank you! He truly was a unique ball player. On a personal level, and on a baseball level. Truly a game changer through and through all those years in SD!

Fantastic job man! You are truly talented at putting these types of videos together. I guarantee you are going to blow up if you keep releasing videos of this quality!

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Thank you so much! That’s really cool of you to say. I’m glad that you’re enjoying the content!

Such a class act! One of the best hitters of all time. I used to love listening to him talk about hitting the baseball.

Just think if baseball were that exciting again; putting the ball in play and creating action, what a novel concept.

I remember meeting him at a autograph signing in clairemont square when I was like 8. We waited for hours, and when it was my turn, I just remember being star struck and speechless. I don’t know if I even said anything. Tony was and always will be Mr. Padre!

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

That’s an awesome story you have, and when you know the magnitude of meeting Tony, it’s not surprising at all that you wouldn’t know what to say! I was too young to remember when I met him at a signing at Cashman Field.

I knew (not well) Chris Gwynn at SDSU. Was a huge fan of Tony. Greatest hitter I ever saw along with many games watching Rod Carew. I can't decide who was the best.

My all-time favorite player. Gwynn was the best

I got to see him play a lot at Jack Murphy Stadium when I was a kid. All very good seats, and yes he was one of my favorite players

One of the coolest moments of my life was at the ASG fan fest in 2010 in Anaheim. Gwynn was there giving a talk on, of course, hitting. I watched a bunch of 30-40 year old men sit there cross-legged, as enthralled as a 3rd grade class listening to their teacher read their favorite book. Such a cool moment.

This man was a beast. I loved going to padre games as a kid and watching this man hit. He was too good.

Class personified and a true gentleman! R.I.P Tony! ⚾️

I never knew this until my dad told me. He was also called 5.5 because he would most of the time hit between the shortstop and third baseman

Great video! Tony was from another planet

Tony was a great man most importantly. He helped Gary Sheffield and according to Gary, saved his life. Glad he was a Padre for life. Wish we could’ve got a ring while he was playing.

One of the best of all time,Tony was the model of consistency

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

I like the profile pic by the way!

Those 80s uniforms in San Diego… 🔥 so glad they went back to the brown n gold.

@mysticakhenaton1701

4 ай бұрын

they were uglier, in the LATE 70's. when Dave Winfield, and Ozzie Smith played for them. LOL

My dad had a ton of great cards from 1975 through 1995 that he had saved and forgotten about that I'm currently grading and selling, and I just want to say it's been so amazing recognizing these figures due to their trading cards and linking them to some of my childhood memories (ie Frank Thomas)! Even if I don't have those memories, I get to see my dad's memories in his eyes, so thank you!!

I was privileged to watch Tony's entire career. My only sports hero. RIP Mr. Padre

Holy crap..... How do you ONLY have 5k subs? Bro, what a great video, better than 85%that i have watched. Will keep watching. Some ideas Cal ripkens streak and the backstory of how everyone tried to pull strings and keep it going Magglio ordonez triple crown and the history of it Randy johnsons dominance at such an old age and his injuries that he overcame The home run race with mcgwire, sosa

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Haha I appreciate that! That’s kind of you, and thank you for the suggestions.

Great video! Love the content!

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

That’s awesome to hear. I’m glad you’re enjoying the content!

Great job, a well made video.

I grew up watching him, I'm a A's fan but how he hit as a non power hitter was perfect. He retired the year I graduated high school.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Tony is one of those guys no matter if you were a Padres fan you could root for him!

I remember watching him in the 90s. He & bonds had the greatest plate discipline & hand eye coordination I ever saw. Striking Gwynn out was like drinking soup with a fork.

so the year of his 1000th hit, if i can remember correctly, he had a conversation with Ted Williams. In that conversation they discussed pull hitting, homeruns, and making the pitcher pitch you your pitch. Tony struggled with this new adaptation to his skill set. When he did perfect it (resulting in 5+ homeruns in a short amount of time) he eventually went back to his hitting style thus regaining ground on his batting average. To paraphrase the conversation, make the pitcher pitch inside so you pull it over the wall(homerun). Once you've done that multiple times they won't pitvh you there and you can caontinure to dominate the rest of the plate as you see fit.

From a kid who spent many summers watching Tony play at The Murph, thanks for this video of my all-time favorite player. Excellent job! Some of the footage in the first half of the video didn't match the timeline, but overall very thorough baseball bio of Mr. Padre. Thanks again!

@Cam23

5 ай бұрын

Thank you, I appreciate the kind words! The trouble with making these videos is exactly as you described, footage is hard to come by especially from '80s ballplayers. Sometimes I'm left with no choice but to put something out of place 😂

One day I was at a game in Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati and sitting in right field stands awhile before first pitch. Tony had walked over and was talking the bullpen catcher just a few feet away from the seats. Just being silly I yelled to Gwynn "(Mario) Soto says he's gonna fit you for the golden sombrero today!" , ( knowing full well how incredibly unlikely that scenario was, despite Soto's ability) Tony yells back ' my head is too big ' and laughs that Tony Gwynn signature laugh. It really made me realize that this is a good guy with a sense of humor and who puts on no airs. I was surprised he acknowledged my goofy comment at all and certainly didn't expect him to reply with his own funny line. I was a admirer before that but afterwards he was my favorite athlete not playing for the Reds

Subbed. Great video. Can’t wait to see the rest.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Thank you! Welcome to the channel 👏

This has to be the tenth time I've watched this. Everytime I see it I have to watch it.

Great video. Tony Gwynn deserves to be remembered more by today’s players, fans, and kids. One thing though…It was 1947 when Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier, not 1945.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Oh shoot on baseball reference it showed 1945 but I realize that was still his Negro League days. Good catch!

@rexpresto

11 ай бұрын

@@Cam23 Yeah…I think Robinson played for the Dodgers top minor league team, the Montreal Royals, in 1946, but he definitely made his MLB debut in 1947.

My favorite player of all time.

You did a great job with that fantastic video! I always knew Tony Gwynn was great, but I didn't realize just how great he was. Thank you! And thank you, Tony Gwynn, for the great example you set for all of us!

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Thank you for the kind words. We owe it to Tony for his incredible story and career!

Another Banger dude.

Great vid man ty tg19 one of my 2 favorite players ever along with TSW9

Great Video. Thank you. This makes me want an Ichiro video.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed! Ichiro would be a great video 😯

Another great video! Tony was my father's favorite player🎉

@Cam23

9 ай бұрын

Thank you! And that’s awesome, it’s easy to see why, he had a superb ability to play the game and is a baseball legend!

Loved watching him hit. George Brett should be next!

Im Yankees fan but Tony one of my favorites. What a stud ⚾ P.s Great video my friend. Can tell you really appreciate his greatness. Tony so fun to watch play baseball

Great video. I was a treat to watch Tony Gwynn play, growing up the only times where I live to watch him play was Wednesday/ Sunday night baseball or on WGN or TBS but I would look for him in the box score in the paper every day at school. He was and still is one of my favorite players not on my favorite team.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

As a baseball fan, we all have those players that we check the box score for. On the MLB app, you can “follow” players now, which is the perfect feature for doing exactly that!

@Chili-su3mm

11 ай бұрын

@@Cam23 MLB app is awesome they give you a game a day to watch

A career shaded by the OPS age. I glad someone is finally putting light on this man.

Wow! I don't remember Gwynn having so many SB's.

Rest in peace Tony gwynn 🙏🏾🙏🏾 one of the greatest hitters I ever seen 💯💯

As a Braves fan i always enjoyed watching Tony. He could slap that ball on any spot on the field

If you don't love Tony Gwynn you probably don't love baseball

Great tribute to a great player and great human being

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Thank you! Tony is larger than life so it’s definitely a large task trying to do him justice with a video like this

Great Job Man.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Thank you!

Tony Gwynn was peak America

There was a very similar video about Wade Boggs a couple weeks ago. It's pretty insane to think how similar of careers Tony Gwynn and Wade Boggs were, they started their careers the same year and ended up with extremely similar stats by the end of their careers with each one having slightly better stats in specific categories wile many other stats showed them almost a dead tie. I always considered Tony to be Wade's NL alter ego and vice versa because they were so similar as reliable contact hitters but never opposed each ohter because they were in opposite leagues their entire careers. Though there mgiht have been maybe a couple of interleague games I can not find stats for, for the life of me they might have played at the end of their careers I can't find.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Yeah I made that Boggs video! Haha 😂 this is a continuation of the insane prime series. They have a lot of parallels and could be viewed as alter egos!

Epic video I knew he was great but man I love hearing it like this rather then reading on it.

I always liked Gwynn but if his team challenged my Yankees I would have felt differently. This is the greatest hitter in my lifetime for sure. Great video

@evanfunk7335

10 ай бұрын

He certainly challenged you, but the team never rallied with him

Nice 👍 & I never knew that He did all of this with part of his bat missing 8:11 😁 😉 ✌️

Excellent video. A suggestion: Get behind what made Gwynn so remarkable off the field. He was one of the first player to use video recorders to scrutinize himself and the pitchers he faced.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

Thank you! I did mention his pioneer work for video replaying himself at 9:30, unless you’re referring to something totally different

Awesome content!! I've always believed if Tony would have stayed in better shape he would have legged-out the three...THREE!! extra hits he needed to bat .400 in 1994. That's just one extra infield single every 37 games.

A really exceptional player

Pure class all the way, RIP Mr. Padre

Tony hit *OVER* .300 in 2-strike counts alone. No one else ever hit over .265. Tony should be on ESPN right now, calling games and telling stories.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

I would tune in every game!

@lukeschiltz9688

11 ай бұрын

I’ve got bad news for you

Love him RIP tony❤❤

enjoying the videos... would love to see one on one of the most underated players of all time... Bobby Bonds

I have a feeling that if Gwynn played for a blue blood team in baseball like the Yankees then he would have won a few MVPs. His stats are off the charts but the most impressive thing is consistency putting up stats that would be career years for most players.

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

His consistency is remarkable! What’s a down season when your name is Tony Gwynn? 😂

At 11:44 you forgot about Rod Carew's 1977 chase for 400 So many people were chasing history in 1994 it's crazy that of all the years to strike it had to be that one.

@Cam23

9 ай бұрын

I knew about Carew, I was referring to the last time someone hit .400 in a season. There have been several chases since, but I was referring to Ted Williams’ .400 average season.

As a kid I once saw Tony Gwynn getting intentionally walked in a game. The pitcher threw a pitch a little too close to him and he reached out and slapped a double down the left field line. It was awesome! Pure hitter. Would have been more celebrated during his career if he had played in a bigger city and was on tv more.

@Cam23

10 ай бұрын

Wow! Sounds like Tony to me haha 😂

He's better than Boggs. In my opinion...

I never knew him and I’m not a Padres fan but man I miss 19

Ted Williams, considered the greatest pure hitter of ALL - TIME repeatedly say' Tony Gwynn is the greatest hitter over ALL the others

My dad was at an SDSU game and he was wearing a USC hat since he went there but my mom went to SDSU so they supported SD. He yelled for Gwynn to have a great game and Tony saw my dads hat and snarled at him

@Cam23

11 ай бұрын

😂😂😂

For a nice commentary on Tony Gwynn see the August 23, 2023 Keith Oberman countdown he does a commentary at the end that’s very heartwarming