Tony Gwynn vs The Braves Big 3

[@willmach]

In his entire 20-year career, Gwynn struck out 434 times -- an average of 21.7 K's per season. Last season, 129 players had struck out 22 times by the end of April. Gwynn struck out three times in a game only once in 1994, Gwynn batted an absurd .397 in two-strike counts. On 45 separate occasions, Gwynn recorded four hits in a game -- 11 more times than he recorded a multi-strikeout game.

[@Cam23]

The amount of insane Tony Gwynn stats like these boggle my mind! He was a different level of hitter, not seen before and will never see again.

[@chrishoward1378]

Also maddux never struck out gwynn ...I believe I read that right.

[@patrickfoley6215]

A friend laughed when I said Gwynn was better than most hitters today. My friend said Gwynn didn't hit homers.

[@coyote4237]

@@chrishoward1378 To be fair, Maddux was never a "strikeout" pitcher.

[@terminat1]

Which fact do you find most impressive?

[@DryHeaveSteve]

SD native. People still leave flowers at his statue. We miss him immensely

[@davidfeltz8697]

We all do. Foes not matter where you live or what team you cheered for.....we all love Tony.

[@sethtate2079]

Best pure hitter in last 60 years.

[@Snakeman612]

Case could be made EASILY.....He's the best of all time

[@bigglesworth06]

Of all time

[@flame-sky7148]

@@Snakeman612 Yep, when you consider the fact that he faced relief pitchers except for Hoffman (teammate) and the other eras didn't have to face that specialty relief pitching. All of MVP closers in the HoF are from the modern era. The case can be made.

[@noahbaden90]

Ichiro is arguable, but it's definitely one of them.

[@MultiJacquan]

Ever

[@PrinceChaloner]

Every time I go watch the Padres games I see Tony Gwynn always get's a hit.

[@delt2743]

Mister San Diego Tony Gwynn. Thanks for all the years of great baseball ⚾️ All the years going to Padres home games Tony was my favorite batter to watch.

[@joshuapatrick682]

Rest In Peace big number 19! His lack of MVP’s especially for the 97 season blows my mind. No doubt he should have won it in 94 if the strike didn’t happen.

[@Cam23]

The fact he never won MVP has always perplexed me

[@flame-sky7148]

He could have won the MVP in 1987 as well. Instead of Dawson (Last place Cubs), and Bell in the AL (should have went to Trammell) , the voters missed it in both leagues.

[@stevenwalker9013]

Everyone was stuck on voting for the power hitters.

[@AnHebrewChild]

@@stevenwalker9013plus he played for a small market. San Diego in the 80s and 90s was a tiny market even by small market standards. Had he played in LA, I bet Gwynn sees an MVP

[@robertgabriel4393]

Tony deserves it but he did not need one he was the best

[@UnicornOfDepression]

As a kid growing up in the 80s in San Diego, Tony was my hero. It wasn't until the 1999 All-Star game did I truly realize how much Tony meant to all baseball fans, and not just us in SD. We lost a legend way too early.

[@Cam23]

Tony is a hero to all! It’s sad thinking about how early he was taken from us. But he left a lasting legacy in the time he had!

[@davidfeltz8697]

One of the most respected and beloved player of our time. The man was pure joy!

[@badgoat91]

I’m so happy my old man brought me to Padres games as a kid. #19 was a great role model and a great player.

[@bladeduffer]

Great video! I think only the high baseball IQ crowd got just how good Gwynn was. The amazing part was that he stayed in SD. I remember seeing him on the freeway heading home in his gorgeous Porsche convertible. He had the top down, ball cap on backwards, and just jamming to some tunes. We honked at him and waved,. He looked over and waved back with that famous smile. He embraced the city and we did the same to him. We loved him like a son, brother, and father. When he passed it felt like we lost family. I still can't believe our Mr. Padre is gone.

[@davidfeltz8697]

Thanks for sharing. Best laugh and smile in baseball. He will live on as a true legend in the great sport of baseball.

[@daviddamascus9657]

Big Maddux fan here but Gwyn was almost designed to be his kryptonite. Maddux talks about pitching against Gwyn with pitching ninja and his strategy was to keep the ball in front of the outfielders. Problem there is, Gwyn was fine with that. He was so capable at putting the ball where he wanted to he could do plenty of damage while keeping the ball in front of the outfielders.

[@kevinfinnerty8414]

.415 career average vs Maddux. That’s crazy.

[@Cam23]

Agreed!

[@ian0903]

Maybe this Maddux guy isn't very good 😂

[@Cam23]

@@ian0903 😂😂😂

[@ian0903]

@@Cam23 I’m glad you know I was just joking 😀. I'm a Padres fan in my early 50's. I watched Maddux in his prime. I know damn well that he was a great player.

[@scottrackley4457]

I sure he hit .400 or better against quite a few pitchers.

[@aaronharris5069]

Cubs fan, but loved Tony Gwynn's sweet batting stroke. The epitome of plate discipline.

[@lavonyoung2366]

Tony was greatest Padre of all time. He was the most under paid player of all time. He loved San Diego and San Diego loved him. He was the type of guy that you would wish you son would grow up to be like and I am not talking about Baseball.

[@stereomois]

and we get to listen to Tony Gwynn Jr on the Padres radio broadcast. Very similar voices.

[@davidfeltz8697]

I just love Tony . So devastated when he passed I love him for the man he was. The chsrity. Humility, the smile and definitely the best laugh in baseball. One of my favorite athletesvon any sport. Yeah he had superman bionic vision and could hot, but it was the character.

[@joshuaburba1048]

Back in the late 90's, my brother and I drove to Atlanta from Nashville to see the Braves against the Cubs (I'm a lifelong Cubs fan). On the mound that day were Greg Maddux for the Braves, and Kerry Wood for the Cubs (just a short time after Wood's historic 20 strikeout performance). It wasn't much of a game if you wanted offense, but I've never seen such an amazing pitching duel. The Braves won the game 1-0. Maddux pitched a complete game and Wood only came out in the 8th. Good memories right there.

[@stereomois]

I didn't watch the game live back then, but Kerry Wood's 20K game is the most dominant pitching performance I've seen.

[@joshuaburba1048]

@@stereomois Well said. I did happen to catch that game on T.V. and I remember the excitement building as he kept getting more strikeouts. Good times. Thanks for your comment.

[@elreiec1]

I lost count at the number of times I said "what?!" while watching this video. Tony Gwynn was simply unreal. Best pure hitter of modern day baseball.

[@chrishoward1378]

Gwynn and Ted Williams are the Two greatest hitters of all time. Period. Ted #1

[@encinobalboa]

The Big Three combined for just over 9,000 k's in their careers. They were machines. This makes Tony's 3 k's even more amazing.

[@TomWagemaker]

I went to close to 1,000 Padres games during Tony’s tenure with the Pads. It’s crazy how good he was!

[@senorpepper3405]

Jack Murphy stadium and then Qualcomm. But Jack Murphy was the good ol' days. It was a beautiful time.

[@leninmercedes6567]

Love Tony…… I feel fortunate to see him Play

[@DJCYCLONE2]

Best pure hitter ever

[@ravinderaujla1321]

It was a privilege to watch this man hit.

[@davidfeltz8697]

His personality, character. Snd charitable works are even better than his hitting prowess and greatness on the diamond.

[@2tigere]

Tony gwynn is on top 5 favorites of all time.

[@kmcc01]

He must have had the best and quickest eye hand coordination and reaction of any hitter not named Ted Williams of the modern era. Those stats against the big three of the Braves is mind boggling. Taken from us way too soon. For me no other sports figure means San Diego than Tony Gwynn.

[@Cam23]

He embodied that city and was a role model unlike any. Definitely an all time great talent

[@christianc.2664]

I'm from SD and I heard him say once that he was always looking for outside pitches to go the other way. 5.5 hole was his bread and butter. If you happened to throw inside on him he had the reaction time to drive it down the line. Great player. Pleasure to watch him against Maddox, Glavine and Smoltz in their prime.

[@FuzzyFromYT]

You’re getting better and better 🔥

[@mrsinister8943]

Gwynn is the best hitter since Ted Williams and is the perfect #2 or leadoff man. Him and Maddux are such intelligent players. I still remember the 1994 season and how Gwynn was on a tear.

[@jrobby4926]

SD native here....the loss of Tony and Jr. Seau were awful. We had minimal sports heros growing up...RIP Tony. The greatest legacy in SD.

[@charlestonbleuu6469]

Nuff Respect.....Speaking for the people from 1600 Atlantic Avenue Home Of Long Beach Poly High School Very Good Feature OnTony. We Grew Up In The Same Neighbor Hood. His Dad Was My Football Coach, Tony Was Our Coach During The Summer In All Spors. He Was 4 Years Older Than Me. Very Good Man

[@sddn22]

My favorite player growing up in San Diego. Love watching him hit… thanks Tony #19

[@EatUpBoise]

One of the best hitters of all time. Best in my lifetime by a long shot.

[@samueloro7871]

This man could hit in any genaration, I'm so glad to have seen him suit up. RIP MR Gwynn🙏

[@cesarbriones2419]

Aawwww ❤❤❤❤ this dude. His brilliance as player can only be surpassed by the person he was. Specifically his humility and humanity. Go check out the 805 brewery and make toast to great American, a Padre, Respect

[@turtle19dad]

Would like to see what he did vs the Unit. I can totally see Tony laughing at Smoltz….😂😂😂😂

[@stereomois]

Tony struggled a lot vs. Johnson Still, in the 98 playoffs he somehow managed to slap the ball while both of his feet were off the ground and hit a run producing double. I think its the only hit he got off him in some 11 at bats.

[@jmillshobbies6344]

Excellent video, loved watching gwynn, i can't remember seeing him strike out more than twice and i started watching baseball in 88. I just dont see someone nowadays playing like gwynn with that high average and rarely striking out producing against the best pitchers

[@Cam23]

He was a one of a kind! There will never be another Tony Gwynn

[@senorpepper3405]

It was a different era. Grew up a cardinals fan in San diego. More hitters could actually lay down a bunt. My favorite player was ozzie smith but I loved baseball so I recognized Tony's greatness. Went to many games at Jack Murphy and then Qualcomm.

[@harrymiram6621]

Wounder how Gwynn faired against Steve Avery, when he was w/Atlanta. That's one of the reasons loved about TG...Quiet, Studious & Deadly against pitchers. Once he seeks/finds a certain pichers weak-point(s)...you're dead meat! How many MLB hitters can say that they were Never struck out vs Maddux?!

[@Snakeman612]

His stats against Maddux is absolutely craaaazy!! Tony Gwynn by far the best hitter ive ever seen in my life

[@Cam23]

They are absolute video game numbers haha 😂

[@UnicronTGOC]

Just discovered your videos and I love them so far. I love mid 80s to early 90s smooth jazz music playing in the background too. Haha! 😉

[@Cam23]

I’m glad you’re enjoying the videos! I’m a big fan of ‘80s music and I played in jazz bands in grade school. It definitely influenced my music taste!

[@UnicronTGOC]

@@Cam23 oh cool !!

[@UnicronTGOC]

This makes sense cuz I'm a smooth Jazz head and I'm thinking like where do you know this music from??? Lol

[@Cam23]

@@UnicronTGOC I definitely listen to jazz more frequently than most my age 😂

[@UnicronTGOC]

@@Cam23 thT is great! Keep it true!

[@kgriff5537]

He would have produced way more runs if he was blessed with a lethal cleanup hitter and great 1+2 hitters his career. The only guy that was a decent 1, 2, or 4 hitter he had for an extended period of time was Bip Roberts. I don't recall him being an All Star.

[@daveatkins3796]

In 1992, he was behind Tony Fernandez, with Fred McGriff immediately following with Gary Sheffield who was contending for the Triple Crown that year. In the 1998 season, he was behind Veras with Greg Vaughn and Caminiti behind him. Those were some fierce hitters (yes, they were roided outta their minds) that he had, but mostly through his career, he was a one man show. Just wish he had that kind of lineup like you mentioned throughout his career. Maybe he would have gotten a much deserved ring.

[@j_tin]

Showed up on my recommended, high quality video! Graphics and storytelling are hella clean. Glad to your 3.46k subscriber and watch your channel grow!

[@Cam23]

Thanks for the kind words!

[@joebarr725]

If Tony Gwynn were still playing, he could go 0-for-1182 and still be a career .300 hitter. That's not a typo. That's one thousand one hundred eighty-two.

[@barrywagoner5191]

Crazy... That's going ~2.5 MLB seasons without a hit and still maintaining a lifetime 0.300 average.

[@kevhead1525]

There was a time early in their careers that I thought Boggs was going to be the better of the 2. Turned out to be not even close.

[@stereomois]

Had they retired after 89, Boggs would have the best numbers, but Tony was even better in the 90s

[@benbirrd788]

This is absolutely insane.

[@AltonW521]

That’s impressive!⚾️

[@jsdzx]

I’m as casual as they come with baseball but here I’m am down the Tony G rabbit hole. Wow

[@Cam23]

He’s a rare breed! Truly fascinating individual

[@jorgejaviercaroortega3278]

Amazing

[@chrisrodgers429]

Ok so In my opinion gwynn was the greatest hitter ever, for the simple fact he did it against better pitching than what ted William faced.

[@jeremygeller9145]

It becomes tricky, yeah Gwynn faced tougher pitching, on the other hand Gwynn had better training, and access to hours of video footage and research we know he extensively used. If Ted had access to the same resources tony had, but had to face just as tough pitching as him, who would be better. Hard to say, but I think I would go with tony, that strikeout stat is ridiculous

[@logankelley111]

Ted Williams said that Tony Gwynn was the greatest hitter he ever saw

[@paulboegel8009]

Definitely the best hitter of his era .

[@P99-v6n]

Rest in peace, Tony.

[@armbarfan]

I never saw Ted Williams play, so Tony Gwynn was the greatest pure hitter I've ever seen. I'm 50.

[@bchillbong-uf2io]

This man was like another Santa clause for kids in San Diego. His name was much like Paul Bunyan or Davie Crockett.

[@steveszanto1581]

the Owen Wilson "wow" LOL

[@blueduster74]

.302 lifetime average with two strikes. That’s the most incredible stat in all of sports. Wade Boggs at .262 is second.

[@chrishoward1378]

Actually maddux faced gwynn about 112 times and yes gwynn never struck out once vs maddux. Which is insane!!

[@Vlabar]

Imagine if Gwynn had been on good teams

[@PapaJohn1969]

Tony Gwynn #19

[@tottTownbiz]

RBI baseball for Super Nintendo back in the day I use to sub tony Gwynn for Ricky Henderson because he had more HRS lol

[@qjenkins4063]

All he did was hit, hit, hit, no matter what

[@um52]

20 years- 434 strikeouts. Record 19 straight .300 seasons. Struck out 3x in a game once. .394 in a season cut short in the roid era. Greg never struck out Gwynn once. He Owns other records also

[@ice-iu3vv]

"the highest average of anyone since ted williams retired after the 1960 season." ted's career started in 1939. ive always said gwynn has "the highest average of anyone whose career began since 1940. we're saying the same thing, highest since ted williams, but i got tony an extra 20 years by wording it that way.

[@bryanwelch6209]

I miss watching that guy hit

[@zacharyredding3860]

Throw launch angle out the window and keep the bat through the zone for as long as possible. You'll never get kids to latch onto that approach today, sadly.

[@bartsullivan4866]

When you have the major respect of 3 Hall of Fame pitchers you know your badass it's just too bad the Padres couldn't put better pieces around Tony for better seasons. I digress being a Mariners fan is like ramming your head into a brick wall when it comes to our management. The big 3 were excellent wish I could have saw them play live. I wonder if Tony studied pitchers the way Maddox studied hitters offsetting each other. Like Lou Brock studying pitchers to steal off of.

[@andypagakis]

Man if he laid off the cheeseburgers and took some steroids, he could have hit that ball over the fence instead and had like a 1000 home runs and he'd still be alive and healthier today too Hard not to love the guy tho, never heard any baseball player not like this dude

[@ericd2831]

Wow

[@rsp49]

Greatest hitter of all time. No disrespect to Ted Williams but that era pitchers topped out at 90. The quality of pitching was very poor compared to Gwynn’s era.

[@aldito7586]

Now think about this. In the "old" days, batters pretty much faced the same pitcher the whole game. Not in Tony's time!

[@TeeDaBee13]

Was that Joe Rogan saying “wowww” ?! 😂😂😂

[@Cam23]

It’s Owen Wilson 😂

[@mattwatters5702]

14 SO for the entire season!!!! Players today get that in a week.

[@Cam23]

No one will ever do that again!