MR. PADRE

Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn Dead at 54

One of baseball’s best.

Mr. Padre is gone. Tony Gwynn has died at the age of 54. The Hall of Famer played 20 seasons with the San Diego Padres, earning eight National League batting titles, five Golden Gloves, and 15 All-Star Game appearances. He hit a career average .338 and snagged 3,141 hits during his time in the big leagues. Since 2002, he had been serving as the baseball coach for his alma mater, San Diego State University, and received a contract extension last week, despite his known health problems. For the past four years, he’s been battling cancer in his salivary glands. His son, Tony Gwynn Jr., is an outfielder with the Philadelphia Phillies.