Posted September 2, 200420 yr SAN DIEGO -- Saturday will be a day that was essentially predetermined the moment Tony Gwynn took the field. It will be merely one day of "Mr. Padre Weekend," but it will be the day when No. 19 is retired and given its place of honor. "I've had the great opportunity to play with a lot of great players in my career," Wally Joyner said, a former teammate of Gwynn's. "I'll put Tony up with any of them." Gwynn's 19 will join Dave Winfield's No. 31, Randy Jones' No. 35, Steve Garvey's No. 6 and Jackie Robinson's No. 42 atop the batter's eye in center field at PETCO Park. Winfield, Jones and Garvey had their numbers retired Aug. 20, and Robinson's, which has universal retirement throughout Major League Baseball, was unveiled July 3. The pregame ceremony at PETCO Park on Saturday, will be just one part of three days commemorating the greatest player to ever wear a Padres uniform, and one of the most accomplished hitters in baseball. In his 20 seasons with San Diego (1982-2001), Gwynn not only established a mark for most seasons by any single player in franchise history, but he set the bar incredibly high for any future Padre. Gwynn won eight batting titles, the first in 1984 and the last in 1997. Along the way, Gwynn became just the 22nd player in Major League history to collect 3,000 hits when he achieved the feat on Aug. 6, 1999, at Montreal's Olympic Stadium. Gwynn finished his career with 3,141 hits, the 18th-highest total in Major League history, Currently the head baseball coach at San Diego State, his alma mater, and a baseball analyst for ESPN, Gwynn will be on hand Saturday and will be joined by family, Padres' owner John Moores and Mayor Dick Murphy. His daughter, Anisha, will sing the National Anthem prior to Saturday's game. Anisha Gwynn's single "No Means No" debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot Singles chart. Promotional giveaways featured during the weekend include Tony Gwynn collectible figurines (Friday, Sept. 3) presented by Home Depot and The Mighty 1090, and Tony Gwynn mini-bats for kids (Sunday, Sept. 5) presented by the Century 21 Award and the Planet 103.7. The retirement ceremonies are befitting of a player who played his entire career with the Padres and represented his ballclub on 15 National League All-Star teams. Gwynn batted over .300 in 19 consecutive seasons (1983-2001) and retired with a career batting average of .338, the 18th best all-time and the highest by any Major Leaguer since Ted Williams (1960), who finished with a career mark of .344. "He had the talent to be as good as any player ever," Joyner said. "Only his [knees] held him back. But it's a testimony to his hard work and dedication that he accomplished all that he did." Gwynn is the career offensive leader in virtually team every category, including batting average, doubles, triples, RBIs and runs. Gwynn was a member of all three Padres division championship clubs (1984, 1996 and 1998) as well as a five-time Gold Glove winner in right field.
September 2, 200420 yr good, he's the best contact hitter who have ever lived, considering he batted .338 against modern pitching.
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.