Tony Gwynn #19

Anthony Keith (Tony) Gwynn...Tony and his wife Alicia (Cureton) have a son, Anthony II (10/4/82) and a daughter, Anisha Nicole (8/8/85)...Tony graduated from Polytechnic High School in Long Beach in 1977 before attending San Diego State, where he played both baseball and basketball...a point guard, Gwynn still holds the all-time Aztecs assist record and was a 10th-round selection of the NBA's San Diego Clippers (210th pick overall) on the same day he was drafted by the Padres...Tony was an All-Western Athletic Conference guard in 1981, selected in the same All-Conference backcourt as Brigham Young's Danny Ainge, who went on to star in the NBA and formerly coached the Phoenix Suns...Tony remains the only athlete in WAC history to be recognized as an All Conference performer in 2 sports...in 1997, the new state-of-the-art SDSU baseball stadium, which was built through funding from Padres Chairman John Moores, was dedicated in Tony's name...Tony Gwynn Field was named the 5th-best stadium in college baseball by Baseball America in 1998...Tony's brother Chris was an All-American baseball player at San Diego State and a member of the 1984 U.S. Olympic baseball team...Chris played parts of 10 seasons in the major leagues for the Dodgers, Royals and Padres and is now a Padres scout...brother Charles, a baseball star at Cal State-Los Angeles, is a teacher in South Central Los Angeles.

2000

SUMMARY: In his 19th M.L. season, appeared in a career-low 36 games and did not play after June 23 due to season-ending surgery on his left knee...nonetheless, batted .323, topping .300 for an N.L.-record 18th consecutive season...with 41 hits, ran his career total to 3,108 to climb into 17th place on the all-time list.

MEDICAL REPORT: Underwent surgery on his left knee on June 27 at Green Hospital Scripps Clinic in La Jolla...the procedure was performed by Drs. Jan Fronek and Steve Copp...during the out-patient procedure, small pieces of cartilage were washed out of Gwynn's knee joint, and the surfaces of his femur, tibia and patella were also smoothed out...the surgery was his 4th on the left knee...in 2000, Gwynn had previously been on the 15-Day Disabled List April 29-May 15 due to inflammation in the knee...missed 3 April games after being hit on the right elbow by an Al Leiter pitch on Opening Day in New York.

STILL CLIMBING THE CHARTS: With 28 singles, ran his career total to 2,356, 9th-most on the all-time list...his 12 doubles ran his lifetime total to 534, 23rd on the career list...scored 17 runs and now stands 74th all-time with 1,378.

HITTING HIS STRIDE: In his final 21 games between May 19 and June 23, hit .408 (31-for-76) with 9 doubles, a homer and 10 RBI...lifted his average to .323 from .196 in that span, which included 8 games with 2 hits and a pair of 3-hit efforts...hit safely in each of his last 9 games, going 15-for-31 (.484) with 3 doubles and 7 RBI...after hitting .186 (8-for-43) in 13 April games, batted .389 (14-for-36) in 10 games in May and .396 (19-for-48) in 13 games in June.

AN ALL-STAR BREAK: Sidelined by injuries for most of the first half, was not named to the N.L. All-Star team for the first time since 1988...with the exception of `88, had been on every N.L. All-Star team since 1984...was voted to start 11 times, including each of the last 5 seasons before 2000.

MORE 2000 HIGHLIGHTS: Went 3-for-3 and reached base 5 times to lift his average to .301, above .300 for the first time in 2000, June 7 at Oakland...snapped a 1-1 tie with a pinch-hit one-out RBI single off Scott Williamson in the bottom of the 8th in a 3-1 win over the Reds June 17 at The Q...posted 11 games with 2 hits and a pair of 3-hit contests in 32 starts...logged 4 straight multi-hit games June 6-11, going 9-for-16 (.593) with 5 RBI...went 9-for-24 (.375) with a double and 2 RBI in 6 games as a designated hitter during interleague play...was 2-for-3 with 2 RBI as a pinch hitter...did not commit an error in 26 games in right field...struck out only 4 times in 127 at-bats (140 plate appearances), once every 35 plate appearances...hit .360 (9-for-25) with a double and 2 RBI in 6 games as a designated hitter during interleague play...for his career, is 15-for-60 (.250) with 5 doubles and 4 RBI in 14 games as a DH.

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
19 GOING ON 20: The 2001 season will be Gwynn's 20th in a Padres uniform...in baseball history only 16 players, including only 4 other National Leaguers, have played at least 20 seasons and spent their entire careers with one team.

3,108 AND COUNTING: Baseball's active hit leader, Gwynn enters 2001 with 3,108 career hits, 17th-most in major league history...he is within 176 hits of the all-time Top 10...Tony became the 22nd player in history to collect 3,000 hits with a first-inning single to right-center field on a 1-2 pitch from Montreal's Dan Smith August 6, 1999 at Olympic Stadium...he finished the milestone night 4-for-5.

.300 AGAIN: With his .323 batting average in 2000, Gwynn hit .300 for the 18th consecutive season, surpassing Honus Wagner's N.L. record set from 1897-1913...the major league record belongs to Ty Cobb, who topped .300 for 23 consecutive seasons in the American League between 1906 and 1928...through the 2000 season, the 2nd-longest active .300 streak in the major leagues belongs to Mike Piazza, currently of the Mets, who has hit .300 each of the last 8 seasons beginning in 1993...the only time Tony has failed to bat .300 at any stop in his professional career was 1982, when, after batting .328 in 93 Triple-A games, he batted .289 in 54 games for the Padres in his major league debut...with 2 more hits that season, Gwynn would have hit an even .300, which would have given him 19 consecutive .300 seasons at the start of his career, surpassing Wagner's M.L. record of 17.

MR. PADRE: In 19 seasons with the Padres, Gwynn is the all-time club leader in batting average (.338), base hits (3,108), runs scored (1,378), doubles (534), triples (84), stolen bases (318), RBI (1,121) and games played (2,369)...he ranks 3rd in club annals with 134 homers, behind only Nate Colbert (163) and Dave Winfield (154).

SULTAN OF SILVER: Tony joins Honus Wagner as one of 2 players in N.L. history to have collected 8 batting titles...the only major leaguer to win more is Ty Cobb, who earned 12 in the A.L...Gwynn and Cobb also share the distinction of being the only players in history to string together 2 separate streaks of 3 or more consecutive batting titles, with Tony earning 3 in a row from 1987-89, then collecting 4 straight from 1994-97...Cobb won 9 straight from 1907-15 and 3 in a row from 1917-19...Tony is the only player in M.L. history to win 4 batting titles in 2 separate decades...with a batting crown in the 2001 season or thereafter, he would join George Brett (1976, 1980, 1990) as the only players to lead their league in hitting at least once in each of 3 decades.

TONY'S AWARDS: The winner of a National League record-tying 8 batting championships (1984, 1987-89, 1994-97), Gwynn is a 15-time N.L. All-Star and has been voted to start the All-Star Game 11 times, including 5 of the last 6 seasons...the 11 starts are the most ever by an N.L. outfielder and equal Reggie Jackson's M.L. record among outfielders...has been named to 11 of the last 12 All-Star teams (all but 2000) and 15 of the last 17 (all but 1988 and 2000)...in addition to being voted to start in 11 games, was named to start the 1994 Mid-Summer Classic by manager Jim Fregosi...Tony has made The Sporting News Silver Slugger team 7 times (1984, 1986-87, 1989, 1994-95, 1997), also most in Padres history...Gwynn has been named to The Sporting News All-League team a club-record 5 times (1984, 1986-87, 1989, 1994)...he has earned Padres Most Valuable Player honors, voted upon by the San Diego Chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America, a record 7 times (1984, 1986-88, 1994-95, 1997)...he has won 5 Rawlings Gold Glove Awards (1986-87, 1989-91), most in Padres history...Tony has been named National League Player of the Month 5 times (April of 1984, June of 1987, July of 1988, August of 1993 and May of 1997), once again most in franchise history...Gwynn has also been recognized on numerous occasions for his community service efforts...in 1999, he received the Roberto Clement Man of the Year Award, which recognizes the player who best combines sportsmanship and community involvement with excellence on the field...Tony received the 1999 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award, presented annually by Phi Delta Theta fraternity to the M.L. player who best exemplifies the character and leadership of the Hall of Fame first baseman, both on the field and off...following the 1999 season, Tony was inducted into the World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame in Boise, ID...in 1995, he received the Branch Rickey Award, as the top community activist in Major League Baseball as well as the inaugural Chairman's Award, presented to the Padre who best exemplifies the community spirit of the Moores family.

ABOVE AVERAGE: A career .338 hitter, Tony leads all active players in batting average and is 18th in M.L. history...of the 17 players in front of Gwynn on the all-time list, 14 are in the Hall of Fame, although only 3 (Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker and Nap Lajoie) have more career hits than Tony...San Diego native Ted Williams is the only player in baseball with a higher batting average than Gwynn since World War II.

ACTIVE LEADER: Leads all active players in career batting average (.338), hits (3,108) and strikeout-to-walk-ratio (.545)...ranks 2nd among active players in doubles (534 to Cal Ripken Jr.'s 587) and intentional walks (202 to Barry Bonds' 320)...ranks 3rd among actives with 84 career triples behind only Lance Johnson (117) and Steve Finley (90)...ranks 4th in career games played (2,369), at-bats (9,186) and runs scored (1.378) and 5th in total bases (4,212).

LEADER RECORDS: In addition to his N.L. record-tying 8 batting titles, Tony has led the league in hits 7 times (1984, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1994, tie in 1995, 1997), tied with Pete Rose for the N.L. record...Ty Cobb led the A.L. in hits 8 times...Gwynn has led the league in singles 7 times (1984, tie in 1986, 1987, 1989, 1994, 1995, 1997), an N.L. record...Nellie Fox, who led the A.L. in singles 8 times, holds the major league mark.

SINGLES SCENE: Gwynn begins the 2001 season ranked 9th on the all-time singles list with 2,356, most among active players...he is 71 singles shy of moving into the all-time Top 5...he has led the league in singles an N.L. record 7 times (1984, tie in 1986, 1987, 1989, 1994, 1995, 1997) one shy of Nellie Fox's M.L. record.

DOUBLING HIS PLEASURE: Tony heads into the 2001 season ranked 23rd on the all-time major league doubles list with 534 career 2-base hits, 2nd to only Cal Ripken Jr. among active players.

DENTING THE PLATE: Gwynn begins 2001 ranked 74th on the all-time major league runs scored list with 1,378..only 3 active players have scored more runs: Rickey Henderson (2,178), Cal Ripken Jr. (1,604) and Barry Bonds (1,584).

PUBLIC ENEMY NO. 1: Has compiled a lifetime average of .300 or better against every team in the National League with a high-water mark of .379 against Colorado.

MULTIPLICITY: Enters 2001 with 899 career multi-hit games: 622 two-hit games, 232 three-hit games, 36 four-hit games, 8 five-hit games and a 6-hit effort...the Padres are 31-14 all-time when he has 4 or more hits (23-13 in 4-hit games, 7-1 in 5-hit games, and 1-0 in his 6-hit game)...the Padres are 1-6 in Tony's last 7 games with 4 hits...Tony's 9 career games with 5 or more hits (8 games with 5 hits and a 6-hit effort August 4, 1993 vs. San Francisco) are one shy of Pete Rose's N.L. record...Ty Cobb owns the major league mark with 14.

MR. CLUTCH: Tony is a career .351 hitter (712-for-2,031) with runners in scoring position, including a .393 (235-for-598) average since 1995.

NO K IN HIS ALPHABET: Has struck out only 425 times in 9,186 career at-bats (10,108 plate appearances), an average of once every 23.8 plate appearances...with 780 career walks, has drawn 1.8 walks for every strikeout in his career and has walked more than he has struck out in every major league season except his rookie campaign of 1982, when he drew 14 walks and struck out 16 times in 54 games.

200-HIT SEASONS: With 200 or more hits in 1984, 1986, 1987, 1989 and 1997, Gwynn is one of only 19 players with 200 hits in 5 or more seasons...Pete Rose posted a M.L. record 10 seasons with 200 or more hits.

.350 STREAK: Gwynn hit better than .350 for 5 consecutive seasons from 1993-97, a feat previously accomplished only by Ty Cobb (11 straight .350 seasons), Rogers Hornsby (6) and Al Simmons (5) in baseball history...Tony lifted his career average to .340 from .327 by hitting .368 over those 5 seasons, baseball's best 5-year average since 1931 and the 8th-best in history.

1999

SUMMARY: In the season in which he achieved baseball immortality with his 3,000th hit, Gwynn led the Padres with a .338 average, 139 hits and 41 multiple-hit contests...the 8-time N.L. batting champ would have ranked 2nd in the league in batting but fell 56 plate appearances shy of qualifying due to a pair of D.L. stints during which he missed 44 games because of a strained left calf...appeared in 111 games, which before 2000 were the fewest in which Tony had played in a non-strike season since his rookie year...batted .300 for the 17th consecutive season, tying Honus Wagner's N.L. record...although unable to play due to injury, was named to his 15th N.L. All-Star team, voted to start the Mid-Summer Classic for the 11th time, the 5th year in a row...batted .371 (72-for-194) with 14 doubles, 4 homers and 35 RBI in his final 42 games beginning August 4.

NO. 3,000: Tony became the 22nd player in history to collect 3,000 hits with a first-inning single to right-center field on a 1-2 pitch from Montreal's Dan Smith August 6 at Olympic Stadium...he finished the milestone night 4-for-5.
- Gwynn became the first major leaguer to reach 3,000 since the Twins' Paul Molitor on September 16, 1996, the first National Leaguer since the Cardinals' Lou Brock on August 13, 1979.
- Only 2 players reached 3,000 hits in fewer games than Tony...Ty Cobb achieved the milestone in 2,135 games in 1921, and Nap Lajoie reached the mark in 2,224 games in 1914...Tony achieved his 3,000th hit in his 2,284th game and 8,874th at-bat...the only 5 players to reach 3,000 in fewer at-bats are Cobb (8,093), Tris Speaker (8,625), Lajoie (8,630), Stan Musial (8,774) and Honus Wagner (8,801).
- Gwynn is one of 8 members of the 3,000-hit club to spend his entire major league career with a single club...he joins Stan Musial (Cardinals), Roberto Clemente (Pirates), Al Kaline (Tigers), Carl Yastrzemski (Red Sox), Robin Yount (Brewers), George Brett (Royals) and Cal Ripken Jr. (Orioles). aGwynn's .338 average in 1999 was the 5th-highest ever by a player during the season in which he collected his 3,000th-hit, the 2nd-highest since 1925...the only higher averages belong to Ty Cobb (.389 in 1921), Tris Speaker (.389 in 1925), Eddie Collins (.346 in 1925) and Paul Molitor (.341 in 1996).

STRONG FINISH: Lifted his average to a season-ending .338 from .309 in his final 52 games beginning August 4, batting .371 (72-for-194) with 14 doubles, 4 home runs and 35 RBI...hit safely in 42 of his last 49 starts with 22 multi-hit games, including 4 games with 3 hits and a pair of 4-hit contests...had 3 games with 2 RBI, a pair of 3-RBI nights and 2 games with 4 RBI in that stretch...with a 10-for-16 tear over 4 games September 29-October 1, lifted his average to .340 for the first time since May 19 before he went hitless in a pair of pinch-hit at-bats on the season's final 2 days to finish at .338.

DELIVERING IN THE CLUTCH: Ranked 2nd in the majors with a .412 (40-for-97) average with runners in scoring position...only Colorado's Larry Walker posted a higher mark (.420)...Tony also hit .343 (12-for-35) with runners in scoring position and 2 outs and .365 (69-for-189) with runners on base, 2nd only to Walker (.387) in the National League and 6th-best in the majors...he led the club with a .429 (15-for-35) average with a runner at third base.

BIG DAY IN ST. LOUIS: Went 7-for-8 with a double, 2 RBI and 3 runs scored in a September 29 doubleheader in St. Louis, finishing 3-for-4 in game one and 4-for-4 in the nightcap...lifted his season average to .339 from .328 in the process.

MULTIPLICITY: Despite making only 105 starts, posted 41 multiple-hit games, including 9 games with 3 hits and a pair of 4-hit contests.

GOT YOU WHERE I WANT YOU: Led the N.L. with a .296 batting average (34-for-115) with 2 strikes and tied St. Louis' Thomas Howard for the major league lead by hitting .500 (7-for-14) on 3-2 counts.

TURNING ON THE POWER: With 10 home runs in 1999, Gwynn reached double figures for the 3rd year in a row after turning the trick twice in his first 14 full major league seasons...hit 43 homers from 1997-99 after slugging 90 in his first 16 seasons combined.
- Posted his 4th career 2-homer game in a 6-4 win, August 14 vs. Florida...went 2-for-4 with 2 home runs, 4 RBI and 3 runs scored in the game...his 2nd homer snapped a 4-4 tie with 2 outs in the 8th...the 2-homer game was Tony's first since July 17, 1998 at Cincinnati...Gwynn also went deep twice April 27, 1986 vs. San Francisco and July 11, 1997 at Colorado.

MILESTONES: With 7 total bases April 24 vs. Arizona, Tony became the 54th player in history to top 4,000 career total bases...finished the season with 4,156 total bases, 49th all-time...ripped his 500th career double April 28 off the Mets' Armando Benitez...hit a 2nd-inning 2-run home off the Marlins' Ryan Dempster August 14 in his 9,000th career at-bat.

NO K IN HIS ALPHABET: Struck out only 14 times in 411 at-bats, once every 29.4 AB's...worked 29 walks, marking the 17th consecutive season in which he has walked more than he has struck out...lifetime, has drawn 771 walks and fanned only 421 times in 9,059 at-bats (once every 21.5 AB's).

MORE '99 HIGHLIGHTS: Slammed a 3-run homer off Vic Darensbourg to erase a 7th-inning 3-2 deficit and propel the Padres to a 6-3 win, September 3 at Florida...3 days later at Pittsburgh, hit a 3-run shot in the 5th to turn around a 2-0 game and lead the Friars to a 4-3 win...snapped a 7th-inning 5-5 tie with a sac fly, lifting the Padres to an 8-7 win over the Marlins, May 12 at The Q...May 7 vs. Atlanta, singled home a pair off John Rocker in the bottom of the 8th to tie the Braves 3-3 before Phil Nevin delivered the game-winning single.

SYMMETRY: Hit .338 (54-for-160) before the All-Star break and .339 (85-for-251) after the break...batted .340 (69-for-203) with 5 homers and 31 RBI at The Q and .337 (70-for-208) with 5 homers and 31 RBI on the road.

MORE NUMBERS: Hit .324 (45-for-139) with 6 home runs vs. lefties and .346 (94-for-272) with 4 home runs vs. righties...went 1-for-4 as a pinch hitter and 1-for-8 with a double in 2 games as a designated hitter in interleague play...hit .392 (29-for-74) with 5 homers when swinging at the first pitch.

1998

SUMMARY: Topped the .300 mark for the 16th straight year as he led the N.L. champs with a .321 average, tied for 8th-best in the league (the first time he had ever finished lower than 6th in a batting race)...slugged 16 home runs (one shy of his 1997 career high) and collected 51 extra-base hits...was named to his 14th N.L. All-Star team, and was voted to start for the 10th time...with 18 strikeouts in 505 plate appearances, was the toughest player to strikeout in baseball (1 K/28.1 PA).

SEEING STARS: Voted by the fans to appear in his 14th career All-Star Game...went 1-for-2 with 2 RBI in his 11th All-Star start (including a non-voted start in 1994), his 5th in a row...led all N.L. outfielders in fan balloting...flew out to left off the Yankees' David Wells in the first...gave the N.L. a 2-0 lead with a 2-run single off Toronto's Roger Clemens in the 3rd.

HAPPY NEW YEAR: Including a 3-run homer on Opening Day at Cincinnati, Gwynn hit safely in each of his first 9 games (13-for-36, .361 with a double, 2 homers and 8 RBI)...in 31 games through May 7, batted .390 (46-for-118) with 5 doubles, 4 homers and 18 RBI...hit .297 (102-for-343) in 96 games the rest of the way.

DRIVE FOR FIVE: Recorded his 8th career 5-hit game, April 28 vs. Chicago, finishing 5-for-5 with a homer and 2 RBI in a 7-3 win...the feat raised his batting average to .360 from .321.

GONE BATTY: Hit in 9 straight at a .514 (19-for-37) clip July 28-August 5, matching his longest `98 streak (March 31-April 9)...had 5 doubles, 2 homers and 6 RBI during the tear, including 7 multi-hit efforts...the streak lifted his average to .325 from .305 and came on the heels of a slide during which hit .154 (8-for-52) in 15 contests from July 5-23...that skid, which included a career-worst 0-for-19 drought from July 5-14, lowered his average to .304 on July 14 from .332 on July 4.

MILESTONES: Recorded his 1,000th career RBI, May 16 vs. the Phillies with a pinch-hit sacrifice fly off Curt Schilling...collected career hit No. 2,900 with a 3rd-inning single to right off Montreal's Dustin Hermanson, August 3 at Olympic Stadium.

IN THE CLUTCH: Hit .340 with runners on, .316 with runners in scoring position and .472 (17-for-36) with runners in scoring position and 2 outs...batted .358 (24-for-67) with 4 doubles, 4 homers and 12 RBI in close-and-late situations (7th inning or later in games decided by 2 runs or less).

CONTACT HITTER: Led the majors by missing only 5.8% (43 of 745) of the pitches at which he swung...put 60.5% (451 of 745) of his swings into play, also the best percentage in all of baseball...hit a National League-best .299 (40-for-134) with 2 strikes against him...Toronto's Tony Fernandez (.303) and Tampa Bay's Aaron Ledesma (.301) were the only players in baseball with better 2-strike averages.

MAN OF THE YEAR: For the 2nd consecutive season, Tony was named the club's True Value Roberto Clemente Man of the Year for his efforts on the field and in the San Diego community.

TOUGH TIMES: Endured 2 of the worst hitless droughts of his career...matched his previous career-worst (May 12-16, 1993) by going 0-for-14 in 3 games June 17-19...surpassed that with an 0-for-19 slide, July 5-14.

D.L. TIME: On the 15-day D.L., August 13-September 1, with an inflamed left Achilles' tendon...missed 18 games...went 5-for-7 with a double, a homer and 3 RBI in his first 2 games back, September 1-2 vs. New York.

MORE '98 HIGHLIGHTS: Hit 2 home runs in a game for the 3rd time in his career in a 13-3 win in Cincinnati, July 17...the homers were part of a club-record 6-long ball barrage...went 9-for-14 with 4 doubles, a homer and 2 RBI in a 3-game set, July 28-30 at New York...that series began an 8-game stretch during which Tony hit .529 (18-for-34) with 7 multi-hit games, lifting his average to .325 from .305...went 2-for-4 and hit a tie-breaking solo home run off Brian Bohanon in the top of the 5th to give the Padres a 3-2 win at Los Angeles on September 23.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS: Hit .323 with 8 homers vs. lefties and .320 with 8 homers vs. righties...batted .312 with 5 long balls at The Q and .328 with 11 homers away from home...went 3-for-13 (.231) as a DH...hit .541 (20-for-37) with 3 home runs and 10 RBI in 9 games against the Mets.

POST-SEASON: Enjoyed his 3rd career trip to the post-season--and his 2nd World Series appearance--batting .298 (17-for-57) with 3 doubles, a home run and 7 RBI in 14 games...hit safely in 11 of the Padres' 14 post-season contests, including 4 games with 2 hits and a 3-hit effort in Game 1 of the World Series...hit .200 (3-for-15) with 2 doubles and 2 RBI in the 4-game Division Series vs. Houston...made one of the key defensive plays of the post-season, gunning down Moises Alou on the fly, as Alou attempted to advance from first to third with nobody out on a single to right by Carl Everett in the 7th inning of Game 3 with the Padres protecting a 1-0...batted .231 (6-for-26) with a double and 2 RBI in the 6-game NLCS vs. Atlanta...went 2-for-5 with an RBI in San Diego's 10-inning, 3-2 win in the series opener...also went 2-for-5 in the pennant-clinching 5-0 win in Game 6...saved his best for last, batting a team-best .500 (8-for-16) in 4 World Series games against the Yankees...returning to the Fall Classic for the first time since 1984, Tony went 3-for-4 with a 5th-inning 2-run homer off David Wells in Game 1...he was 1-for-4 in Game 2 at Yankee Stadium...finished 2-for-4 in both Games 3 and 4 at The Q...drove in a run in Game 3.

1997

SUMMARY: Capped the most spectacular season of his illustrious career with his N.L. record-tying 8th batting title, his 4th in a row...batted a major league-best.372 and established career highs with 17 home runs and 119 RBI...shattered club records with 220 hits and 49 doubles...posted personal bests with 68 extra-base hits and 324 total bases...led the majors in batting for the 5th time (1984, 1987, 1994, 1995)...paced the N.L. with 67 multi-hit games, including 20 three-hit games and 4 four-hit efforts...named to his 13th All-Star Game; voted to start for the 9th time...won his 7th N.L. Silver Slugger award, his 3rd in 4 years...finished 6th in N.L. MVP voting...named Padres MVP for the 7th time.

SILVER BAT NO. 8: Earned his N.L. record-tying 8th batting title, his 4th in a row, with a .372 average...only Honus Wagner has won 8 batting crowns in N.L. history...the only major leaguer to win more than 8 is Ty Cobb (12 in the A.L.).

4 IN A ROW: With his 4th consecutive batting crown, Gwynn became one of only 6 players to win 4 or more titles in succession...only 2 players have won more than 4 in a row: Ty Cobb (9) and Rogers Hornsby (6)...Gwynn and Ty Cobb are the only players to ever string together 2 separate streaks of 3 or more batting crowns in a row...Gwynn is the only player in major league history to win 4 batting titles in 2 separate decades.

HIT PARADE: Led the majors with 220 hits, surpassing his previous career high and 1987 club record of 218...led the N.L. in hits for the 3rd time in 4 seasons and the 7th time in his career, tying Pete Rose's N.L. mark and moving within one of tying Ty Cobb's major league standard.

A CHECK OF THE LEADER BOARD: In addition to leading the N.L. in batting, hits and multi-hit games, Tony was the hardest player in the majors to strike out (1 K/23.3 AB's), and he tied for the league lead in sacrifice flies (12)...he was 2nd in the N.L. in doubles (49), tied for 6th in RBI (119) and intentional walks (12), 7th in total bases (324) and tied for 8th in both on-base percentage (.409) and slugging percentage (.547)...Gwynn ranked 10th in the N.L. in extra-base hits (68) and RBI ratio (1 RBI/5.0 AB)...ranked 2nd in the N.L. with a .356 average vs. lefthanders and a .378 average vs. righthanders...also ranked 2nd with a .378 average at home and a .365 average on the road...was 3rd in the league with a .365 average in day games and paced the circuit with a .375 average at night.

BRINGING THEM HOME: Established a career high with 119 RBI, 2nd-most in club history...Tony's previous high was 90 in 1995...Ken Caminiti plated a club record 130 in 1996, and Greg Vaughn drove in 119 in 1998...Gwynn edged Paul Molitor as the oldest player in history to drive in 100 runs for the first time (Gwynn turned 37 on May 9; Molitor turned 37 on August 22, 1993)...like Gwynn, Molitor was in his 16th M.L. season when he knocked in 111 for Toronto in 1993.

MR. CLUTCH: Batted a major league-best .459 (67-for-146) with runners in scoring position...hit .490 (24-for-49) with a runner at third base and .615 (8-for-13) with 4 doubles and a homer with the bases loaded...led the majors with a .395 (34-for-86) batting average in close-and-late situations.

DYNAMIC DUO: Gwynn, who led the N.L. in batting at .372, and Wally Joyner, who finished 5th at .327, became the 3rd pair of Padres to finish in the top 5 in the N.L. batting race in the same season...Gwynn and John Kruk finished first and 4th respectively in 1987, and Gary Sheffield and Gwynn finished first and 5th in 1992.

THE CHASE FOR .400: Tony upped his average to .402 on July 14, going 3-for-4 with 3 RBI vs. San Francisco...needed only a home run to become first Padre ever to hit for the cycle...his average was at .400 or higher, May 29-June 13, on July 2, July 12 and July 14, the latest in a season he has ever had his average at the magic mark...was last at .390 on August 5 and was last at .380 on August 29.

DOUBLE TALK: With 49 doubles, Tony surpassed Steve Finley's 1996 club record of 46 and came within one 2-base hit of becoming the 55th player in major league history to collect 50 doubles in a season.

MILESTONES: Slugged his 100th career home run June 7 vs. Houston off Donne Wall, becoming the 3rd Padre to reach the century mark...became the 105th player in history to reach 8,000 at-bats, July 28 vs. Philadelphia...collected his 2,600th hit and his 300th stolen base May 2 vs. Montreal...is one of 24 players ever to attain both feats...became the 120th player to appear in 2,000 big league games June 3 at Atlanta...collected career RBI No. 900 on June 10 vs. St. Louis.

MERRY MONTH OF MAY: Named N.L. Player of the Month for May, batting .447 (46-for-103) with 4 homers, 20 RBI, a .650 slugging percentage and a .478 on-base average...it was his 5th such honor: April 1987 (.434); June 1987 (.473); July 1988 (.406) and August 1993 (.448).

STREAKIN' FRIAR: Posted 19- and 20- game hitting streaks, the 2nd- and 3rd-longest of his career...hit in 25 straight in 1983...hit safely in 20 in a row, May 20-June 10...batted .494 (39-for-79) during the tear with 10 doubles, 2 homers, 15 RBI, 20 runs scored and 12 multi-hit games during the tear...hit in 19 straight, June 21-July 14, batting .429 (36-for-84).

INSIDE JOB: Tony legged out an inside-the-park grand slam, June 26 at Los Angeles, the first in the majors since August 28, 1991 by the Cubs' Chico Walker at San Francisco and the 5th in the 1990s...it was Tony's 2nd career grand slam (August 22, 1995 at Philadelphia), 2nd career inside-the-parker (July 29, 1988 vs. Cincinnati) and the 12th inside-the-park home run in Padres history.

COVER BOY: Appeared on the cover of the July 28 issue of Sports Illustrated...the cover proclaimed Tony to be "The Best Hitter Since Ted Williams"...Gwynn also joined Hall of Famer Stan Musial on the cover of the July 28 issue of The Sporting News...the cover story centered on a nearly 2-hour conversation about the art of hitting the 2 greats shared in St. Louis in July.

GOT YOU WHERE I WANT YOU: Led the majors with a .400 batting average with an 0-2 count and a .358 average with 2 strikes against him...swung and missed on only 8% of his swings, the best-ratio in baseball...put 58% of his swings into play, 4th-most in the major leagues.

1996

SUMMARY: Hit .353 to win his 7th career N.L. batting crown and 3rd in a row in helping the Padres to their first N.L. West title since 1984...voted to make his 9th All-Star Game start and 12th appearance, but missed the game in Philadelphia due to injury...became the 71st major leaguer to reach the 2,500-hit mark August 14 in Cincinnati...his game-winning hit September 28 at Los Angeles, in the 2nd-to-last game of the season, clinched a post-season berth for the Padres.

WINNER BY 10 LENGTHS: Although Gwynn fell 4 plate appearances short of the 502 needed to qualify for the batting title, he had such a commanding lead over 2nd-place finisher Ellis Burks (.344) of the Rockies that he could add the 0-for-4 afforded by rule 10.23(a) and remain batting champion...with the 0-for-4, his average would have been .349, still 5 points higher than Burks...Gwynn actually could have added an 0-for-10 and still finished with the league's highest average (.345)...rule 10.23(a), the clause that allows a player to add as many at-bats as needed to reach 502 plate appearances provided he still would have the highest average, was added to the rule book in 1967 but had not previously been utilized...in 1993, Colorado's Andres Galarraga reached the requisite number of plate appearances on the last day of the season to win his first batting title.

NO. 2,500: Became the 71st player in history to record 2,500 hits with an 11th-inning, opposite-field single off Cincinnati's Hector Carrasco August 14 in Riverfront Stadium...it was Gwynn's 3rd hit of the night.

THE "BIGGEST HIT" AND "BIGGEST THRILL": Gwynn's 2,560th career hit drove in the runs that clinched a post-season berth for the Padres...he hit a 2-out, 2-run single in the 8th inning September 28 at Los Angeles off Mark Guthrie that drove in Jody Reed and Greg Vaughn...the bases-loaded line drive through the hole on the left side broke a 2-2 tie, and the 4-2 win guaranteed San Diego at least a wild-card berth...Gwynn called it the "biggest hit" of his career...the next day the Padres completed a 3-game sweep to win the N.L. West title, as Tony's brother Chris drilled a pinch-hit 2-run double in the top of the 11th to give San Diego a 2-0 win and its first division title since 1984...Tony called Chris' hit "my biggest thrill."

HEALING THE HEEL: Opened the year by batting .462 (24-for-52) with 6 doubles in his first 13 games before suffering a right heel injury April 15 in Colorado...collected a pinch-hit the following day but was diagnosed with an inflamed bursa sac and missed 8 games...placed on the 15-Day D.L. July 3 (retroactive to July 2) with fraying in the right Achilles' tendon...was reinstated August 6 after missing 30 games and hit .374 the rest of the way...underwent surgery on his right heel October 23, 1996 at Scripps Clinic...Dr. Jan Fronek and Dr. Steve Copp performed the procedure, which included repair of the Achilles' heel and removal of the bursa sac.

IN THE CLUTCH: Hit .381 (32-for-84) with runners in scoring position, the 6th-highest mark in the majors...led the majors with a .471 average (40-for-85) in close-and-late situations...also led the majors in overall batting after the 6th inning...he hit .471 (64-for-136) in such situations, .105 points ahead of 2nd-place Hal Morris (.366).

STRONG FINISH: Gwynn's average sank to a season-low .320 on June 17, but he hit .384 (88-for-229) the rest of the way...hit in a season-high 11 straight games September 4-16 at a .435 (20-for-46) clip...the streak was part of a longer span, August 27-September 16, in which he hit in 18 of 19 games, batting .405 (32-for-79).

CONSISTENCY: Went hitless in 3 straight games (0-for-11) April 28-30, the only time all year he went 3 starts in a row without a hit...it was only the 18th such occurrence in his career and the first since 1993 (May 29-31).

LEAD-OFF SPOT: Hit in the lead-off position June 21 vs. Chicago, the first time he had done so since June 12, 1993...batted lead-off in 18 games in 1996 (also 33 games from the 2nd spot and 58 from the 3rd position).

GAME-WINNERS: Stroked a game-winning single in the 10th inning May 15 vs. New York...cranked a game-winning 3-run homer with 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th off Tony Fossas June 5 vs. St. Louis, as the Padres took a 6-4 victory...it was his first homer of the season.

CONTACT: Swung and missed only 49 times (on 730 swings) in 1996 for a 6.7% "miss" percentage, the lowest in the league...also led the N.L. in percentage of swings put into play (60.4%, 441 out of 730).

POST-SEASON: Appearing in his 2nd career post-season, batted .308 (4-for-13) with one RBI in the Division Series vs. St. Louis.

1995

Hit a major league-high .368 to win the National League batting title for the 6th time...named Padres MVP by the San Diego Chapter of the BBWAA for the 2nd consecutive season and 6th time overall...voted by fans to start in the All-Star Game in Arlington, Texas...made his 11th overall appearance and 8th as a starter, robbing Cal Ripken of a base hit with a shoestring catch in right field...earned his 6th Silver Slugger award...set a then career-high with 90 RBI (previous high was 72 in 1990)...ranked among N.L. leaders in hits (tied for first with 197), doubles (tied for 10th with 33), on-base percentage (3rd with .404), and multi-hit games (first in the majors with 65)...led the National League in singles (154) for a record 6th season...struck out once every 38.5 plate appearances (15 K's in 577 plate appearances) and was the hardest player to fan in the N.L...hit his first career grand slam August 22 at Philadelphia off Tommy Greene (had gone 6,991 career at-bats without a grand slam)...stole 17 bases, his highest total since 1990 (17)...led the major leagues in batting average against righthanders (.389), at home (.387), on grass (.381) and in day games (.431)...hit .394 (54-for-137) with runners in scoring position to lead the N.L...did not go more than 2 consecutive starts without a hit all season...started 132 of the club's 144 games in right field...finished with a .992 fielding percentage (2 errors in 255 total chances) and had 8 assists, tied for the team lead with Steve Finley...put together a team season-high 15-game hitting streak, July 1-17, going 28-for-65 (.431) with 5 doubles and 15 RBI...the tear matched his longest streak since an 18-gamer in 1988...August 3 vs. San Francisco, fouled ball off right big toe, causing a fracture in the tip of the toe...led the majors by hitting .405 (47-for-116) in September and October...lined into a triple play for the 2nd time in his career, July 17 vs Cincinnati (also hit into triple play April 28, 1991 at Philadelphia).

1994

Tony established a career high and club record with his major league-leading .394 batting average, good for a 5th National League batting title...marked the highest average in the N.L. since Bill Terry hit .401 in 1930 and the best mark in the majors since Ted Williams' .406 average in 1941...made a final run at .400 by hitting .475 (19-for-40) during the month of August and batted .433 (26-for-60) in his final 15 games...his 12 home runs and 64 RBI were 2nd-highest totals of his career to that point...selected by Jim Fregosi to play in his 10th All-Star Game...played the entire game and scored the game-winning run in bottom of the 10th inning in an 8-7 victory that snapped the N.L.'s 6-game All-Star losing streak...earned the Silver Slugger award and was voted by The Sporting News to the N.L. All-Star Team...also voted by the San Diego Chapter of the BBWAA as the club's MVP...besides leading all of baseball in hitting, also led the majors with 165 hits, 54 multi-hit games and was the hardest player to fan in baseball, striking out only once every 25 plate appearances...led the N.L. with a .454 on-base percentage and tied for 3rd in doubles (35)...ranked 2nd in intentional walks (16), 8th in total bases (238) and 10th in slugging percentage (.568)...went hitless in back-to-back games only twice, the last time coming May 15-16...went 10-for-13 (.769) in a 3-game series vs. Philadelphia April 22-24...tied club records in the series by collecting 8 consecutive hits and reaching base safely in 9 straight plate appearances...went 5-for-5, April 23, his 8th career game with 5 or more hits...drove in a career-best 5 runs, May 30 vs. Pittsburgh...had three 6-game hitting streaks, two 7- and 8-game streaks, one 9-gamer and a 10-gamer...hit better than .400 vs. 5 teams, including a .571 mark vs. Philadelphia.

1993

Hit .358 but finished 2nd in the N.L. batting race to Colorado's Andres Galarraga (.370)...selected to participate in his 9th All-Star Game...recorded a career-high 6 hits August 4 vs. San Francisco...went 6-for-7 with a pair of doubles and 2 runs scored in the 12-inning, 11-10 win...it was his 4th game of the season with 5 or more hits, tying a major league record shared by Willie Keeler (1897), Ty Cobb (1922) and Stan Musial (1948)...once again ranked among league leaders in several offensive categories despite playing only 122 games...in addition to finishing 2nd in the batting race, shared 4th with 41 doubles, tied for 5th with 54 multi-hit games, ranked 8th in on-base percentage (.398) and was the 2nd-hardest hitter to fan in the National League, striking out once every 28.1 plate appearances...also 2nd to Galarraga with the best home average (.382) and ranked 3rd with a .375 average with runners in scoring position...his 41 doubles were at the time the 2nd-highest mark in Padres history, trailing only Terry Kennedy's 42 in 1982...was 14-for-15 in stolen base attempts, topping his combined total of 11 steals in 1991-92...after recording his first 5-hit game of the year, April 18 vs. St. Louis, went 1-for-15 in next 3 contests...a 1-for-5 on April 24 ignited a 9-game hitting streak, during which he batted .415 (17-for-41)...the tear included his 2nd 5-hit game, April 30 vs. New York...followed that game with a 4-for-5 night and finished the 3-game set against the Mets with 11 hits in 14 at-bats (.786)...equaled his then career high with 4 RBI, June 10 vs. Los Angeles...the next day, came back with 3 RBI on a 9th-inning bases-loaded double to give the Padres a 5-4 victory...hampered by a strained right calf, played in only one game from June 13-25, but then came back to hit safely in 17 of 20 games at a .380 clip from June 30-July 24...during that time, had a stretch of five 3-hit contests during a 9-game span from July 4-16...his third 5-hit game of the season came July 27 at Chicago...also that night, broke Dave Winfield's club mark of 626 RBI with a 2nd-inning RBI single...led the majors with a .448 batting average (47-for-105) in the month of August, collecting Player of the Week honors (August 2-8) and the N.L. Player of the Month award, his 4th monthly award and first since July, 1988...reached another career milestone, recording his 2,000th hit August 6 vs. Colorado in the 2nd game of a doubleheader with a 6th-inning single off Bruce Ruffin...became the 193rd player in major league history to collect 2,000 hits...only Wade Boggs and Kirby Puckett had reached 2,000 hits in fewer at-bats over the previous 50 years...played his last game of the season September 5 in Atlanta and had arthroscopic surgery to clean out loose bodies in his left knee on September 12.

1992

Ranked 5th in the league with his 2nd consecutive .317 average...played in his 8th All-Star Game and started for the 6th time...placed his name in the record book in the 63rd Mid-Summer Classic in San Diego by recording 2 outfield assists...tied the mark for most assists by an outfielder held by Dave Parker (1979)...was the hardest player to fan in the majors, striking out once every 35.6 plate appearances...ranked 4th in the N.L. with a .326 road batting average and shared 3rd with 53 multi-hit contests...hit better against left-handed pitchers (.327) than righties (.311) for the first time since 1988...came through in clutch situations by hitting .322 (29-for-90) with runners in scoring position...hit safely in 17 of 19, May 5-31, at a .416 (32-for-77) clip with 4 homers and 19 RBI...had 10 multi-hit games during the tear...in the middle of the streak, fractured the tip of his right middle finger, when he slammed a car door on it, but he missed only 4 games...suffered another injury later that would end his season early for the 3rd straight year...sprained the medial collateral ligament in left knee, September 8, in San Francisco and saw action in only 4 innings the rest of the way...recorded his 3rd career 5-hit game on the night of his injury, his first since August 11, 1987 vs. Atlanta...had successful arthroscopic surgery on the knee, October 6.

1991

Ranked 3rd in the N.L. with a .317 batting average, earned a starting spot in the All-Star Game and won his 5th Rawlings Gold Glove Award in 6 years...ranked 2nd in the N.L. in triples (11) and with a .325 average away from home...tied for 3rd in the league in multiple-hit games (50) and ranked 10th in hits (168)...once again was the hardest player to strikeout in the majors, going down on strikes once every 29.9 plate appearances...hit .439 (25-for-57) during a 15-game hitting streak, his longest streak since hitting in 18 straight in 1988...captured N.L. Player of the Week honors for June 3-9, going 12-for-23 (.522) with 4 RBI...after being in and out of the lineup in early September, his season ended with arthroscopic surgery on left knee, September 18...missed the final 21 games after his knee was cleaned out and the articular cartilage smoothed by Dr. Cliff Colwell and Dr. Jan Fronek...committed only 3 errors in 302 chances (.990) and led the club with 8 outfield assists.

1990

Tied for 6th in the N.L. with a .309 batting average and set a then career high with 72 RBI...appeared in his 6th All-Star Game, coaxing a walk in his only at-bat...earned his 4th Rawlings Gold Glove in 5 years...tied for 8th in the league with 177 hits and ranked 2nd with 10 triples...picked up career hit No. 1,500 with a 12th-inning single off lefthander Steve Frey, August 15 vs. Montreal...missed the final 19 games with fractured right index finger, suffered when attempting to make a catch against the wall in Atlanta on September 15.

1989

Went 6-for-8 in a season-ending weekend of head-to-head competition with the Giants' Will Clark to lock up his 3rd consecutive N.L. batting crown, his 4th overall...led the league with 203 hits (his 4th 200-hit campaign) and 62 multi-hit games...ranked 6th in stolen bases (40), 7th in on-base percentage (.389) and 9th in total bases (256)...won his 3rd Rawlings Gold Glove Award in 4 seasons and finished 3rd in the N.L. in outfield assists with 13...returned to the All-Star Game, finishing 3rd in the balloting among outfielders...selected to The Sporting News All-Star Team...hit a league-leading .345 on the road...hit .351 against righthanded pitching to pace the league and was the toughest player to fan in the N.L. with a strikeout every 22.6 plate appearances...hit .448 in June, including the first of a pair of 13-game hitting streaks...batted .520 (26-for-50) during the tear and was named the N.L. Player of the Week for the week of June 5-11, when he batted .516 with 2 or more hits in 6 of the 7 games...tied a club mark by reaching base in 9 consecutive plate appearances (June 16-18) with 7 hits and 2 walks...developed both wrist and Achilles' heel injuries in the 2nd half of the season.

1988

Overcame a series of injuries to bat .313 and win his 2nd straight batting title, his 3rd in 5 full M.L. seasons...the .313 mark was the lowest to ever win the league crown (Larry Doyle hit .320 for the 1915 New York Giants)...voted team MVP for the 3rd consecutive season and the 4th time in 5 years...had surgery on his left hand, March 11, to give the tendon unrestricted movement...suffered another injury, May 7, in a fall at Pittsburgh that forced him to the 21-Day D.L...after returning to action, his average bottomed out at .237 on June 3...it stood at .246 on July 2 when he began an 18-game hitting streak, which earned him a pair of N.L. Player of the Week honors...hit .406 in July to win N.L. Player of the Month for the 3rd time in his career...became the 9th Padre to hit an inside-the-park home run, July 29 vs. Cincinnati...notched his 1,000th career hit April 22, a first inning single off Houston's Nolan Ryan...became the all-time Padres hit leader, September 17 in Atlanta with career hit No.1,135, breaking Dave Winfield's mark in 570 fewer at bats.

1987

Set 5 club records, leading the majors in hitting and hits for the 2nd time in 4 seasons and again receiving Padres MVP honors...his .370 average and 218 hits broke his 1984 club marks...also established team standards in runs (119), triples (13) and intentional walks (26)...Tony's .370 average was the highest in the N.L. since Stan Musial hit .376 in 1948...earned his 2nd consecutive Rawlings Gold Glove and made his 4th straight trip to the All-Star Game...named to The Sporting News Silver Slugger team for the 3rd time in 4 seasons...had the first two 5-hit performances of his career, April 16 vs. Los Angeles and August 11 vs. Atlanta...was the 2nd Padre ever with a pair of 5-hit games in one season (Gene Richards, 1982)...won N.L. Player of the Month for the 2nd time in his career with a .473 average in June...name made the record book and his bat was sent to Cooperstown when he was the middle man in a record-setting string of 3 consecutive home runs to start a April 13 in San Diego off the Giants' Roger Mason...Tony's homer was sandwiched between Marvell Wynne's leadoff shot and John Kruk's follow-up blast.

1986

Voted club MVP and selected to the All-Star Game starting lineup for the 3rd straight year...won his first Rawlings Gold Glove Award, finishing with 19 outfield assists, 2nd-most in the majors...led N.L. outfielders in total chances (360) and putouts (337)...August 27 vs. New York, tied a club record when he threw out 3 Mets on the bases, one at the plate and 2 at second...finished 3rd in the N.L. batting race at .329, while leading the senior circuit in hits (211) and tying for the top spot in runs scored (107)...stole 5 bases September 20 in Houston to become the 5th 20th Century N.L. baserunners to accomplish the feat (Dennis McGann in 1904, Davey Lopes in 1974, Lonnie Smith in 1982 and Padre Alan Wiggins in 1984).

1985

Finished 4th in the N.L. in batting (.317) and 3rd in hits (197)...led the majors in multiple-hit games for the 2nd straight year with 63...suffered a mid-season wrist injury in a home plate collision with Mike Scioscia, limiting his playing time and allowing him only one at-bat in the All-Star Game in Minneapolis...as the wrist began to heal, batted .349 from August 1 through season's end.

1984

Ran away with his first N.L. batting title, leading the majors with a .351 average, 213 hits and 69 multiple-hit games as the Padres won their first National League championship...named to The Sporting News N.L. All-Star team and the Silver Slugger team...finished a career-best 3rd in balloting for league MVP (won by the Cubs' Ryne Sandberg)...voted to start in his first All-Star Game at Candlestick Park in San Francisco...his .351 average was the 2nd-best by a left-handed hitter to lead the N.L. since Stan Musial's .351 mark in 1957 (Ralph Garr batted .353 in 1974)...became the first Padre to reach the 200-hit plateau, breaking Gene Richards' 1980 club record of 194 hits...batted .316 in 10 post-season games, including a .368 mark in the NLCS vs. Chicago...his one-out single in the bottom of the 9th in Game 4 against the Cubs set the table for Steve Garvey's home run off Lee Smith that sent the series to a decisive 5th game...Tony's 2-run double in the 7th inning of Game 5 proved to be the game-winning blow, sending San Diego to its first World Series vs. Detroit.

1983

The start of his season was delayed due to a fractured wrist suffered in the Puerto Rican Winter League in December, 1982...after a Triple-A rehab assignment, Tony struggled to a .233 average in his first 24 games with the Padres...batted .333 over the final 62 games to finish at .309...from August 11-September 26, hit in 39 of 41, including a then team-record 25 straight, August 21-September 18, the longest streak in the majors in 1983 and still the longest of his career...batted .361 (35-for-97) with 5 doubles and 12 RBI during the tear.

1982

Opened his 2nd pro season with Triple-A Hawaii, hitting .328 in 93 games...got his first taste of the major leagues on July 19, going 2-for-4 with a double, a run scored, a sacrifice fly and an RBI in his big league debut vs. Philadelphia...batting 5th and playing center field, 22-year-old Tony gave the Padres a 2-0 first-inning lead with a sacrifice fly to center, plating Tim Flannery, in his first M.L. at-bat off Mike Krukow...lined to short off Sid Monge in the 3rd...struck out swinging against Monge in the 5th...his first hit was an 8th-inning double off Monge...in his final at-bat, singled off Ron Reed in the 9th...batted safely in a team-high 15 straight games, July 21-August 4, before breaking his left wrist while diving for a fly ball in Pittsburgh on August 25...missed 3 weeks before returning on September 13...hit .348 (16-for-46) in 17 games the rest of the way.

1981

After signing as a 3rd-round selection in the June draft, reported to Walla Walla of the Rookie Northwest League, where he earned MVP honors after leading the league with a .331 average...managed at Walla Walla by Bill Bryk, now a Special Assistant to Padres General Manager Kevin Towers and the club's Minor League Field Coodinator, Tony was a a teammate of John Kruk and Padres bullpen coach Greg Booker at his first pro stop...spent the final 3 weeks of the season at Double-A Amarillo, where he batted .462 in 23 games.