Hold up. His holes are just very small.”. SAN DIEGO -- There's never a bad time to rehash the insane numbers Tony Gwynn put up during his 20 Hall of Fame seasons in San Diego. Sometimes, I think that’s all baseball is. • In the past 100 years, nobody has more batting titles than Gwynn's eight. Shoes worn by San Diego Padres' Tony Gwynn during the final game of his career, Oct. 6, 2001 - B-300.2001 (Milo Stewart Jr./National Baseball Hall of Fame Library), Tony Gwynn of the San Diego Padres, July 1, 1997 - BL-12-2012 (Brad Mangin/National Baseball Hall of Fame Library), Tony Gwynn wore this jersey when he hit .394 in 1994, the highest batting average for any player for a season since Ted Williams hit .406 in 1941. I had to do the video stuff. And for me Steve Garvey was great, he gave me good advice, he gave me the kind of advice that a young player can take and try to run with it, so I did. I see the brown and gold, I see the orange and blue. I worked hard in the game because I had to. And then 2001, October 9th, 2001, that was the day I retired and I thought that I had a chance to get here and wasn't sure but that day, it dawned on me that you know what, you've had a pretty good career, people have enjoyed what you've done, and for me, what a day, what a day that was, and it's a lot like today. Thank you. And then my family, my wife who again, I would not be standing here today without her. on MLBN. I have a passion for it. He passed away on June 16, 2014. And when you laugh and you can laugh at yourself and laugh at others, that makes the game a whole lot easier to play. That is what they pay us for. The last player to finish his career with a higher average was Ted Williams' .344 mark. I signed with the Padres, I went off to Walla Walla, Washington, and that year in 1981, the big league teams were on strike. I loved the game. And Bobby Tolan assured me I would be able to do that and he promptly took me out on the field, gave me a Fungo bat and said here, I'm going to flip you some balls and take your swing. 19. Thank you for coming. It was 20 years and I had a blast, I had a blast. They've been telling me all day it's my day. And luckily for me my wife said yes, she hit the record button and from the time I came home from that trip to the day I retired, I was a big believer in video. In 1997, SDSU's baseball facility, Smith Stadium, was extensively renovated with $4 million from Padres owner John Moores. So going into the winter, I was pretty convinced that, given the opportunity, I could do good in the big leagues. I'm going to be a grandpa in October for the first time so that child's got no chance, he's got no chance. And later on in 1992 at the all star game I had a chance to sit down with Ted Williams, and I've got to tell you the reason why he made such a huge impact in my career I think is that growing up my father talked about Ted Williams all the time, he had two guys, Ted Williams and Jackie Robinson. • Gwynn finished his career batting .302 with two strikes. I had the extra hit. • In 2007, Gwynn was inducted into the Hall of Fame after receiving 532 of 545 votes -- the 10th-highest total in MLB history. I really tried to emulate some of the things that Garv told me. We make a big deal about trying to make good decision and doing things right, and you know what, we are supposed to. 1984 was really a good year for us, for the Padres. Ty Cobb, Rogers Hornsby and Al Simmons did so before him. Would I be able to generate enough bat speed to make it at this level? Thank you. He said, "Hey, Tony, how you doing? Played there four years, played varsity four years, "Why, Jack. I say thank you because you know what, for the rest of my life when I come here to the Hall of Fame and I look out and I see as many people as I see here today, I can say in our first time here, our first Hall of Fame weekend, the people were lined up way, way back through the trees, so thank you, everyone. I also got drafted by the Clippers later on in that afternoon and I don't think we'll ever see a guy get drafted in two sports on the same day, two different sports on the same day because the drafts have become shows themselves as we found out this year with Major League baseball, we had our own draft show and it was pretty cool. Honey, I'll get back to you at the end. And I remember standing at first base telling Gerald, "Man, I've got to get a thousand more." But this Saturday would have been Gwynn's 60th birthday. '98, we just had a tremendous team in 1998. My mom, she came with us today. • Rather famously, Gwynn struck out three times in a game only once -- against Bob Welch and the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1986. J.D. Two days later, June 8th, 1981, I got drafted in the morning by the San Diego Padres. (Voted by BBWAA on 532/545 ballots) View Tony Gwynn's Page at the Baseball Hall of Fame (plaque, photos, videos). And so the next year I was old enough to go out and start playing myself. This is the full transcript of San Diego Padres' Tony Gwynn acceptance speech into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. I told the people of San Diego when I left to come to Cooperstown, they were going to be standing up here with me, so I hope they are just as nervous as I am, because this is a tremendous honor to be here today. AJ Cassavell covers the Padres for MLB.com. Him and his wife Alees, thank you guys for coming. I was only at Amarillo for a month; I hit .462. I played for one team, I played in one town. Thank you very much. Got an opportunity to talk to, got an opportunity like I have with a lot of these guys sitting here today, had an opportunity to talk to them, asked them about their craft, how they do what they do. He's a fundamental man. His 590 career assists are the most in school history and his 221 assists in the 1979-80 season are also a record. He handles the pitch away as well as anybody, and he’s able to stay inside the ball when the pitch is in. He said, "Never get too high, too low, just go about your business, go about your business the right way." From there, June 6th, June 6th is a very important date in my life because June 6th is the day that I met my bride Alicia Lorraine Church, and from that point on, my life was pretty much set because we were partners in this. Later on that year, the Padres sent me to an instructional league, I got a chance to meet a guy I idolized as a kid and would have an opportunity to play against as a professional, and that was Rod Carew. I truly enjoyed it, but it wouldn't have been nearly as much fun if you hadn't been as supportive as you were, so I say thank you for all of our fans sitting at PetCo park in the morning, thank you to the fans who made the trek, thank you to the fans who are here to see everybody.

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