The Big Unit vs. Tony Gwynn: Unstoppable force vs. Immoveable Object

[@romowasbetterthanaikman3932]

Most people just don’t realize how great a hitter Tony Gwynn was and an even better person.

[@cjvs1604]

The one stat that should always be brought up with Tony Gwynn is his career strikeout total.

[@romowasbetterthanaikman3932]

@@cjvs1604 Absolutely. Really incredible. How about hitting well over .400 for his career against Greg Maddux.

[@benjonesthe3rd200]

I was like 14 , grew up in San Diego, went over to San Diego State Baseball team practice when Tony was the coach , he was ending practice and busy and I talked to him and asked him to sign my hat and he literally asked his assistant to go find me a pen somewhere so he could sign my jacket , he said that wasn’t supposed to be allowed while he was at practice and they had rules but then he’s like alright come on . Really nice guy.

[@nicholasiadevaio3854]

This Yankee fan has seen some of the greatest hitters on the Yankees and other teams. TG is by far, in my opinion, the BEST pure hitter ever. He had a poor lineup around him, and endured a lot of racist crap during his career and STILL performed. Best hitter ever.

[@EatDrinkAndTravel]

I sold him a TV when I worked at Dow Stereo in Encinitas California .

[@budgetbarista]

As a padres fan, Tony was just about the only bright spot we had for many years. What a legend.

[@hmhm856]

What about Hoffman and Caminiti?

[@budgetbarista]

@@hmhm856 We only got to see Hoffy when we were winning since he was a closer and Cammy was amazing but really only performed well in 96' and 97'.

[@rayrussell6258]

One of the greatest against one of the greatest!

[@daveatkins3796]

@Budget Barista Not to mention Caminiti was roided out of his goddamn mind. During his time in San Diego, he was totally juiced. And so was Greg Vaughn and a couple others on that 1998 team. I’m a Padres fan, and always will be til the day I die, but knowing that tarnished that team to a degree ( putting aside that it was a lucky ruse to get the euphoric stadium vote to build Petco Park)

[@MagaKoz]

He was one guy I wished could have won some titles because he played the right way. I just appreciated how he never backed away and gave pitchers a taste of their own medicine. Definitely a gold era of legendary players.

[@dontnonowuno9953]

T.Gwynn was the best hitter I've seen in 50 years of watching MLB.. Unbelievably clutch as well.RIP to the great one

[@johnjacobjingle7177]

Chipper Jones

[@SanctuaryGardenLiving]

Stats don't lie... Best hitter in the common era and the most clutch.

[@nobshistoryengineering4421]

@@johnjacobjingle7177 No, Chipper was great but not better than Tony as a pure hitter.

[@alant5757]

I miss Tony Gwynn… not only watching him play…. but listening to him too. Class act

[@jrobby4926]

His son is doing a great job in the local media here with that same legendary voice and laugh. He is just like Tony as far as being a good man goes.

[@Ch3fdadda]

Tony’s on / off field persona had the entire league’s respect for him. One of only a few players to receive a standing ovation at every stadium in his last season. I still have my ticket stub for his last game at Qualcomm (pronounced “Jack Murphy”) Stadium.

[@erikhancock98569]

The Murph!❤️

[@Bryanpeacock33]

Tony Gwynn is the greatest player in San Diego history.. he is loved and missed

[@laughteraddict1003]

No question

[@jrobby4926]

I agree. LIFE LONG Padre fan. I adore Machado, Soto, Tatis. But I would trade any one of them for a Tony Gwynn. Strike outs are for chumps! LOL

[@purpleheartbbq576]

Growing up in San Diego I can tell you watching Tony play was incredible. A true master in the art of hitting.

[@luie92114]

Definitely miss watching him play

[@towelman8589]

Rip Tony, miss him a lot

[@Conrado0123]

I know that BA isn't held in as high a regard as it once was, but the fact that Gwynn for 19 straight years hit over 300 still absolutely boggles my mind. His bat to ball skill + eye for pitches was unreal and truly one of a kind

[@lucasnogueira1137]

Advanced stats still love Gwynn if you do something well enough it doesn't matter if its the best method or not

[@guitarkoala5]

I think of it like this. If your avg is low, it’s possible you still produce based on the hits you do get, OR you’re a bad hitter. If your avg is constantly high, chances are you’re not a bad hitter

[@lucasnogueira1137]

@@guitarkoala5 true, but if they are basically all singles and you dont walk much you can hit .335 and still not be even in contention for an all star nod

[@YLD16]

It's not just that, you should look up his strikeout percentage for each season. He's even more insane

[@TheBatugan77]

@@lucasnogueira1137 TGwynn had 500+ doubles, and drove in 119 in 1997. His BA with RISP was always high.

[@juanrivera1624]

Tony Gwynn was lost to soon. He is a timeless piece of greatness, forever encapsulated across countless eras. He graced the baseball diamond for many years with his presence and stayed loyal to one team. He is a legend among legends and commanded respect and admiration from all baseball fans. You are missed.

[@Dapper_Dean]

Best hitter in my lifetime is definitely Tony Gwynn. RIP Tony... 🙏🏼😞

[@justsomeguygaming9271]

Big Unit is my favorite player of all time, and Gwynn is my dad’s, thank you for making this

[@user-vr5zk9ox8d]

When Randy found out that he was tipping his slider his entire career would be equivalent to finding out that your 24 year old son isn’t yours.

[@whenwingsfail]

Excellent analogy, #3.

[@BroadStBully28]

still couldn’t be touched

[@ladistar]

Holy shit hahahaha damn

[@budgetbarista]

And he loved that slider anyway, just like he would have loved that hypothetical son. Lol.

[@paulkane7771]

@@budgetbarista Perfect answer.

[@waylonbedlam792]

The respect Tony Gwynn commanded from the defense was incredible. Spiers is basically hugging the third base line because Gwynn could put the ball anywhere.

[@jrobby4926]

Not many men are that incredible of an athlete AND a human being. Tony would take the time to talk to anyone, any fan, any part of town. His autograph was easily obtained when he was alive because of this. America's Finest City sure lost one of it's finest when Tony died. Shout out to Jr. Seau - he was another one who would chat you up at the gas station or at his restaurant:(

[@TheHardcoreProyect]

Randy Tipping his slider is like Koufax Tipping his Curveball. Both were so nasty, that even hitters that knew that they were coming, they still wouldnt hit them.

[@greenfroppy212]

Don’t forget Mo’s cutter. It’s insane how Mo became the best reliever ever based off of one pitch

[@kkttss1928]

I miss Tony so much! Great player and a great guy. I'm not even a Padres fan.

[@jrobby4926]

Now is the time to join us! 3 world series titles coming in the next decade:):):)

[@richardsauceda7074]

Rest in peace, 19 !!! You are sorely missed 😪🌹🌹

[@crispy6311]

I think my favorite Tony Gwynn stat is that he has 11 times as many 4 hit games than he has multi-strikeout games and has only struck out 3 times in a game once. Hardest out in the history of baseball.

[@adambward1]

One of my fav Gwynn stats too! But I think you're mistaken a bit. He only has 11 *more* 4-hit games (45) than multi-strikeout games (34), not *11 times as many* . That would be 495 games with 4 hits (😮) which would basically make him a demi-god and probably push his career BA up to like .750, so it's a pretty big distinction. Ijs... 🙂. But yeah still extremely impressive regardless. And the fact he only had one 3-strikeout game in his entire 19 season career is just wild...

[@tonyattardo9350]

The tid bits that go with his career stats are just ridiculous.

[@budgetbarista]

One of the craziest was his batting average against HOF pitchers. And never striking out against Maddux!

[@paulkane7771]

@@budgetbaristaTony owned Maddux!

[@carlwilliams9642]

@@budgetbarista That's in 107 plate appearances too.

[@jefffinkbonner9551]

Maybe the craziest thing about Tony Gwynn is that his high BA and contact hitting play style is probably the last thing you’d think just by looking at him. He has the build of a .230 40 HR kinda batter. Not someone in the same sentence as Ty Cobb and Ichiro. Cool video!

[@ccc0909]

Back when players didn't strike out 300 times a year by swinging for the fences at every pitch.

[@jackson5116]

I can't believe you didn't even name the player with the most career hits in MLB- Pete Rose.

[@OUTFOXEM]

You're thinking of old, fat Tony Gwynn. When he was younger and in shape he was slim and fast, and he was never anything approaching a 40 HR build (5'11, 185 lb).

[@daytradernupe]

Gwynn is on record that he could have hit 25 home runs a year most of his career if he wanted too but, it would have meant striking out more and a lower batting average. He believed that putting the ball in play was the most important thing a good hitter does.

[@somepeoplecanthandlethetruth]

@@daytradernupe the unfortunate side effect is he was left on base all the time. Where as those homers would have scored a few runs at least.

[@greenfroppy212]

It’s insane what Gwynn batted against some of the best pitchers ever

[@pavanatanaya]

When TG was chasing 3000, I was at the Q whenRandy was pitching, Tony struggled and he fouled off several. Finally he fouled one right over my head to the row behind me, It hit that guy square in the hands and fell into my row at my feet, I just sat down on the ball. It was mine. Its still in a case with my ticket stub

[@COMB0RICO]

Oh man. Beautiful story!

[@uknowtrudo8191]

$5

[@pavanatanaya]

shrewd

[@uknowtrudo8191]

I'll come by tomorrow? I'm also in SD

[@tonyattardo9350]

Nice

[@Faded_36]

Tony Gwynn will forever be my biggest hero. Love and miss you Mr. Padre… Rest In Peace

[@jrobby4926]

When they announced his passing on KGB with Cookie Chainsaw Randolph, I had to pull my car off the road to get out, cry and call my family members.

[@dancingvanillabear]

Hey Ninja can you do more videos like this? I’m in love with this as a concept- maybe something like the Bonds v Gagne or Trout v Sale

[@PitchingNinjaVideos]

Yep--will do!

[@tylerspringstube4868]

Miggy vs sale***

[@jerenharrison5597]

‼️‼️‼️

[@jerrygomez3825]

Piazza vs. Clemens

[@tylerspringstube4868]

Or victor Martinez vs Sale

[@LineDriveBros]

Best baseball short video i've seen in awhile. Legends in this video, not just Johnson and Gwynn, but I noticed Brad Ausmus and Craig Biggio. Great story and baseball lesson to always study the pitcher, no matter who it is. Kudos to you pitching ninja for this quality content. I'm even more impressed you found a video from a playoff game almost 25 years ago. Definitely need more of these legendary face offs amongst the greats. Oh yeah, wanna be even more impressed? Tony was 38 years old around this time (born in 1960). Imagine being 38 and hitting off the big unit. Amazing.

[@brettottinger6828]

I turned my two young nephews on to your amazing videos and they are so pumped to watch your videos and go straight outside and practice throwing SOME STANKY JUNK! Thank you so very much and keep pumping out GREATNESS!!!!! 💪🏼⚾️

[@PitchingNinjaVideos]

That's awesome Brett! Thanks!

[@freedomtrucker2332]

I remember that game ..and Gwynn’s double ..in the 98 divisional playoffs against Houston ..great game and series ..Padres went on to beat Atlanta ..but lost to the Yankees ..my brother and I ..roasting hotdogs along with chili on pie plates ..good times ..miss you Dave ..

[@jrobby4926]

Best Tony memory is the HR in Yankee stadium, '98 world series, off the upper deck façade. Tony, himself, called it his favorite hit of his career. Watch his face when he hits that ball, not a smirk, no gimmick up the first base line. JUST BUSINESS.

[@freedomtrucker2332]

@@jrobby4926 ..nailed it ..these children today could learn a few things from the old guard ..just like Tony showing great respect to guys like Ted Williams back in the day ..

[@SirJoelsuf1]

3:00 We NEED more MLB KZbinrs to talk about Kevin Brown. That dude was an underrated genius.

[@BaratBarrage]

The fact that he was tipping his pitches and STILL almost had 5000 Ks is unbelievable.

[@jackson5116]

because he also threw 99 mph, so even if you know it's coming, you still have to hit it!

[@mfrederick66]

It was a true pleasure to watch him play!

[@Pickle_Nut1]

I was born in AZ and my dad was born in Sd and these are our two favorite players

[@garrytreymendeziii5650]

Two of my favorite players of all time! Thanks for posting

[@fandyllic1975]

There were three legends during those at bats… the legendary Jon Miller was doing the play-by-play.

[@jerrygomez3825]

The giants have a lot to be proud of, their players, their ballpark, their legacy, but to me, a non-giants fan, Miller is their current crowning jewel. He's always a treat to listen to. Possibly the best after Scully (and Jarrin for us Spanish-speaking fans)

[@pianojazzman]

Randy Johnson could pretty much TELL the batter what pitch was coming and it wouldn't have mattered. The batter would still have a tough time hitting it. Except for that (legendary) Tony Gwynn.

[@carlwilliams9642]

That fact that Tony Gwynn batted .302 with 2 strikes just might be the most ridiculously absurd stat I've ever seen in my life.

[@compass5507]

1994 season was Gwynn's best shot at hitting .400. I think he would have done it. He was on fire all year, hitting .394 when the season was called.

[@fachriranu1041]

Isny it like .397 ??? Either way it is really close to 400.

[@feynmanschwingere_mc2270]

It was .397 not .394 but other than that, spot on.

[@jrobby4926]

In my mind, I give him that 400 season. Watching him and Ted Williams in a convertible red car go thru the Q in San Diego was quite a treat, many years ago. Somewhere in heaven, some pitcher is getting owned by Tony and Ted.

[@chrischar9428]

​@@feynmanschwingere_mc2270 .394

[@LongHaulTrucker4Life]

R.I.P Tony... I'm a San Diego native, grew up watching him... He was a great player to watch, even saw him play at Qualcomm Stadium (R.I.P. Qualcomm)..

[@infamousink]

*Jack Murphy Stadium

[@NicholasCaddy]

IM a Big Padres fan watched MR PADRE every chance I got he indeed a legend

[@duhbigcat1848]

Between 1994-1997, Gwynn won the batting title 4 years in a row with a combined batting average of .369.

[@jrobby4926]

And he probably struck out a combined 14 times.

[@HoratioNegersky]

Nice, good to go over some of the old footage. Big Unit's pitching is so intimidating but then he's so nice off the field. Great stuff. There was a hilarious photo of him with a swimsuit model he was photographing that showed up on r/baseball recently.

[@Smushalush]

He does photography meow. A real gentle giant

[@whitey1028]

Tony Gwynn was one of the all time greats!!

[@crunchwrapsupreme9372]

I love how both did something rarely seen against each other that game. Johnson not only struck out Gwynn which is an amazing feat, but he got him looking on a FASTBALL. Then Gwynn hit arguably one of the nastiest sliders of all time, that was practically in the other batters box for a double.

[@rwmorey71]

John Miller and Joe Morgan were the best baseball announcers ESPN ever had.

[@FelicianoMediaCo]

If Tony was a Yankee, in our old stadium, He would have been a 10 time Champ. Heck of a Player. R.i.P Sir. My Favorite Non-Yankee of All Time.

[@jrobby4926]

Yankees and Patriots can burn below turf. SICK TO DEATH of both. Tony was never a Yankee nd all the money in the world couldn't move him. Keep your icky Yankee money.

[@missiletm]

Tony is a GOAT!

[@JWD1992]

Seeing Tony Gwynn strikeout still looks far more surreal than seeing Tony Gwynn turn that slider into a double.

[@stereomois]

I remember one game where the late Darryl Kile struck him out twice as a young pitcher, everyone was surprised.

[@MrTUBEular10]

I'm glad this video popped up in my algos.

[@UnicornOfDepression]

Tony & Trevor. As a San Diego native, '98 was magical. Two of the best ever, but not known as well as they should be. If either played for Chicago, NY, LA, etc, they would be loved even more.

[@eclecticcookingacademy9121]

Fans of both. I lived in Seattle and was born in San Diego. Terrific baseball.

[@tstumpf75]

Gwynn was a god with a bat in his hand

[@siler7]

Humans are not gods.

[@chaddevlin8545]

@@siler7 but what if god was one of us?

[@blackbeardgoatjr2434]

There is an AWESOME bronze statue ofnTony Gwynn at Poway Lake in San Diego county California if anybody is interested. Hey, it's also trout fishing season there!

[@billh4984]

This is baseball gold!!

[@blueduster74]

Still miss TG. Grew up listening to their games in Vegas and then got to see him play when I was stationed in SD.

[@rsuriyop]

Quite unbelievable that Tony's easiest opponent to hit off of was none other than Greg Maddux himself (.415 BA in 107 plate appearances).

[@somepeoplecanthandlethetruth]

It was because Greg would just throw strikes and Gwynn would hit anything over the plate. Greg knew he wouldn't give up homers to him and no one else on the padres was driving him in.

[@tonyattardo9350]

@@somepeoplecanthandlethetruth interesting point. But I still think out of 100+ PA’s there were situations where it was 1-2, two outs, some scrub on deck and Maddux still couldn’t put him away which had to piss him off lol.

[@somepeoplecanthandlethetruth]

@Tony Attardo oh im sure it did. But just imagine how great TG stats would be if he had played with the Yankees

[@fachriranu1041]

@@somepeoplecanthandlethetruth Maddux on record said that his worst enemy is Gwyn so i dont think it is about not respecting his power.

[@somepeoplecanthandlethetruth]

@@fachriranu1041 i seen the videos of it. Thats a point im making as well. Just imagine if he played for a team full of hitters.

[@jamesstinedurf9841]

Randy Johnson is one of very few pitchers that Gwynn did struggle with

[@DominicSilva-bl4ge]

I’ve seen this AB 1k times, including live when it happened, but now I think one of the most impressive things about this plate appearance - besides the hit - has to be Tony knowing Alou was playing left field and taking the extra base. Tony was not fleet of foot then, but he knew Alou had a noodle arm and went to second on a terrible throw. Great hitting and smart.

[@toddm9501]

Randy reminds me, i'm 57, of Nolan Ryan. Wild at 1st. Then........

[@thedude3065]

I really miss Tony Gwynn

[@thomassalas5191]

Same

[@horsehide3039]

Man, the Unit versus smiling Tony, epic stuff. Love it

[@brianm27]

Incredible stuff as always mr. ninja ty.

[@rsuriyop]

Had Randy been born 20 years later he'd be accumulating even more K's today than back then considering how this generation's hitters are striking out at such an absurd pace.

[@Tilon83]

Yeah, imagine Randy vs. Giancarlo Stanton or Gary Sanchez.

[@castlefreeland]

@@Tilon83 Randy Johnson vs. Mark McGwire might be a good comparison towards that hypothetical matchup.

[@Tilon83]

@@castlefreeland At least Mark hit 3hrs against Randy, including that one moonshot. If he faced Stanton or Sanchez, I predict a lot of wind at Yankee Stadium during those ABs.

[@handsvsfood2781]

Randy was the boogie man when I was a kid as a Yankees fan. Magical times to play baseball as a kid.

[@chrisbg99]

Two of my favorite non-Braves players. Damned shame that Tony isn't around to teach the art of hitting.

[@GOPnot4me]

Mr. Padre HOF in baseball & in life. San Diego icon.

[@snakerivercatfishslayer9768]

Long live #19 TG

[@inalavalamp]

That strike 3 call was definitely outside, but I think Tony was even in the next AB

[@jamestiscareno4387]

( Giants fan ) Tony Gwynn truly was a hitting machine. Extremely smart at the plate, a great eye, very patient, his ability to foul off pitches he didn't like until he got one that he did like, he would frustrate pitchers. Great ball player and a good man too. Loved by all.

[@perfect1150]

Props to both of these athletes!!!! Johnson and Gwynn were both studs!!!

[@timbernie]

1999 I saw Tony and Ted Williams being interviewed. They both admitted to being able to see the stitches as released by pitcher. Famous quote from Rush Limbaugh. Can you see the stitches....???? Ted Williams was the wing man of John Glen. And was a USMC Ace Fighter Pilot. 2 wars and 2 types of aircraft. Hard to do being a wingman of John Glen.....

[@SchmidtyProductions27]

Even though the Astros spent more time during my life in the NL than they did in the AL, I still forget they used to be an NL team

[@ra0929]

That 98 NLDS doesn't get the recognition that it should.

[@TheARE316]

Between PitchingNinja and Jomboy I’ve become a baseball fan as an adult. Good shit guys!

[@cindyinnew]

Awesomeness abounds. I am once again living and breathing baseball. These guys are a big part

[@TruthUnboundOfficial]

Tony was one of my heroes growing up. Chipper too. And the Braves starting rotation in the 90's.

[@candidfob8423]

Jon Miller really is the GOAT mlb announcer

[@jalexander2635]

Absolutely

[@donl3248]

Tony was like Fred Sanford; a Junk Dealer. He could deal on a junk pitch like no one else. That’s one big factor in his .300 seasons. A pitcher would try to waste one outside and he’d just go get it and spank it into no man’s land.

[@cindyinnew]

Elizabeth I’m comin’ to meet ya!

[@the_beef4762]

Tony was amazing. All around great guy too. LFGSD! We’re winning a ring this year for you Tony.

[@stevenguevara2184]

I click for Gwynn!

[@HT-sm9dm]

So since athletes are “so much better today” what would that make these guys in 2023? Gwynn batting 8th for the 2023 Padres and Johnson a long reliever for 2023 Seattle?

[@tonykartracer8032]

I like how Randy didn't dare give Tony a good pitch to look at and instead relied on the ump to make a bad outside strike call.

[@HUCY1709]

Albert Pujols is probably the only player to have hit more HRs (5) off Randy Johnson than strikes outs (4) while hitting .458 against him.

[@ILoveMisty1985]

There's a fun stat going around about how Tony Gwynn faced Greg Maddux and Pedro Martinez in 143 plate appearances and never struck out. Well Tony Gwynn had 18 plate appearances against Randy Johnson (including the post-season)...and struck out five times!

[@theprahphet2697]

Thanks for sharing this lovely content

[@pedrocortez3485]

I love baseball.

[@jbenz1990]

Anyone remember when Tony was going for 3000 and the Budweiser office off the 5 freeway was counting down the hits he needed to reach 3000?

[@bobbyjohnson5797]

The one by la jolla pacific beach area off the 5? It had a cow 🐄 up there also by karl strauss? Ahh the 90z.....

[@jbenz1990]

@@bobbyjohnson5797 yesssss!!!!

[@jbenz1990]

Every weekend I would drive by that number would go up.

[@ImTheDudeMan471]

All of San San Diego misses Anthony Gwynn

[@joshuapatrick682]

In a place where the fans are always cheering and the beer is always ice cold they’re waiting for that big lefty to start the game…

[@TheLockdownKidNYC]

A lot of people don't know this but Rivera also tipped his pitches. First pitch was always a cutter. His follow up second pitch was also always a cutter.

[@jackson5116]

Gwynn also used technology to help him by having tapes of different pitchers, and really studying them back when most relied on written scouting reports- that is why he really worked to make himself the greatest contact hitter for his generation.

[@stevencramsie9172]

Gwynn was working on his swing all the way until the end of his career. And ask any visiting player who came and talked to him, he was always willing to give advice.

[@levimiller5686]

The Big Unit was tipping his pitches his entire career and still was one of the GPOAT?? WHAT?

[@j0shuais]

He's like the Pete Sampras of tennis in baseball. minus the deception. His height, speed, release point everything was just too fast for most hitters except TG

[@fishstank8432]

TG 19 Forever

[@jongilbertson2106]

It’s like Yogi Bera once said,”good hitting always beats good pitching. And vice versa.”

[@TheMailmanOfSteel]

Al Leiter is a PITCHER, I think being terrified of Randy when you only see like 2 plate appearances a series is entirely justified imho. Tony Gwynn was an absolute hitting machine, and just look at how far even he stood away from the plate while facing Randy.

[@poshko41]

Ah late 90s baseball was so beautiful.

[@jlocc619]

RIP Mr. Padre

[@i.p.freely3711]

Great video!!!! 🙌👍👍👍👍

[@GothicLoglc]

Gwynn struck out 40 times one season, that's the most he's stuck out in a year. Shohei Ohtani on the other hand struck out more that 180+ times this season, let that sink in.

[@texascard]

Why do people say verse? Instead of versus?

[@degueloface]

God I love you Mr Padres

[@johnjeffers1524]

3:54 hahaha! Look at what a nice guy Randy Johnson actually is now that he is retired. But yeah - when active he was one of the most intimidating men in all of sports. Love American baseball. Badass.

[@AEMoreira81]

On the quote: Tony Gwynn faced Greg Maddux 107 times...career numbers Gwynn had against Maddux? Only .415/.476/.521.

[@kevincole3679]

I didnt see RJ as often as TG, but I loved his highlights. That being said, as a Maddux fan, TG always made me grumble and cuss 🤣🤣🤣