Tony Gwynn
Tony Gwynn
Anthony Keith "Tony" Gwynn, Sr., nicknamed "Mr. Padre", was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 20 seasonsin Major League Baseballfor the San Diego Padres. The left-handed hitting Gwynn won eight batting titles in his career, tied for the most in National Leaguehistory. He is considered one of the best and most consistent hitters in baseball history. He had a .338 career batting average, never hitting below .309 in any full season. Gwynn was a 15-time All-Star, recognized for...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionBaseball Player
Date of Birth9 May 1960
CityLos Angeles, CA
CountryUnited States of America
I was a contact hitter my whole career but I learned how to handle the ball inside. And Ted Williams played a big part in that. He gave me the advice on how to handle inside pitches.
I hate to say it, but, yeah, I'm a tobacco junkie.
What drives me is trying to be perfect.
Like a lot of kids, you kind of think baseball's boring - that's the perception.
Either you have the ability to hit or not. But I also think you have to work at it.
When I was a kid, man, my dad used to buy me the Ted Williams glove at Sears with the Ted Williams shoes with the eight stripes on 'em. I used to play Little League, and I was Ted Williams-ed out.
I think the ability to hit - some guys have it and some guys don't - but I think how dedicated you are to trying to get the most out of yourself, I think kind of determines how good you are and for how long. I was born with the ability to hit, but my work ethic has taken it to the next level.
I think if you enjoy teaching, if you enjoy talking about your craft, that's probably the best way to do it... because once a player starts to get it, once he figures it out, he'll never forget it.
I had no idea that all the things in my career were going to happen. I sure didn't see it. I just know the good Lord blessed me with ability, blessed me with good eyesight and a good pair of hands, and then I worked at the rest.
Sometimes technique works better than a whole lot of other things.
Remember these two things: play hard and have fun.
Knowing the strike zone is very important, but I think the first thing is knowing yourself, knowing what things you do well.
It's about getting in position and taking a swing. I don't care if you're taking steroids or not; if you don't do those two things, it's not going to matter anyway.
Steroids do not guarantee you're going to have success. I think a lot of people think that they will, but they don't.