Greg Maddux once had an awesome Tony Gwynn quote - Larry Brown Sports Comparing Greats: Greg Maddux Vs Pedro Martinez - Who Was The Better You gotta figure, to load up the bases the pitcher has already got to be fucking up. But this Saturday would have been Gwynn's 60th birthday. Gregory Alan Maddux was a Major League Baseball player who pitched for the Chicago Cubs (1986-1998), Atlanta Braves (1993-2003), Chicago Cubs (2004-2006), Los Angeles Dodgers (2006), San Diego Padres (2007-2008), and Los Angeles Dodgers (2008). Scott only fanned Tony three times in 95 matchups. In fact, Maddux saw Gwynn more than anyone. . In the 73 years since Ted Williams last hit .400, all the other hitters who passed through the big leagues -- a group that includes Williams, Joe DiMaggio, Stan Musial, Willie Mays, Wade Boggs, yadda, yadda, yadda -- combined to do it only eight times. The game went into extra innings and Gwynn singled in the tenth, but the Pads were unable to score the winning run. How We Ranked Baseballs Greatest Players, Best Current and Former MLB Players from New Zealand, A Few of the Greatest Players Who Arent in the Hall of Fame, Wee Willie Keeler: The Best Bunter in Baseball History. Gwynn certainly did that. He's the best hitter I've seen in 35 years.". But if a pitcher can change speeds, every hitter is helpless, limited by human vision. Mike Scott, he of the split-fingered fastball, was one of the best strikeout pitchers of the 1980s, and hes the pitcher that Gwynn faced the most after Maddux and Glavine. Chris Cwik. "Tony Gwynn would hit .338 in 2021, '31, '41 Press J to jump to the feed. Martinez is the current leader with four straight .300-plus seasons. That's easily the best mark for any player since numbers were first tracked by count in the mid-1970s. Greg Maddux on Tony Gwynn : r/Cubs - reddit His 590 career assists are the most in school history and his 221 assists in the 1979-80 season are also a record. Here's Why Tony Gwynn Was One Of The Greatest Hitters Ever One reason was his pinpoint control, with his ability to notch front-corner strikes leading to claims that umpires gave him a much wider strike zone than the rest of the league. Full quote: "Sometimes hitters can pick up differences in spin. Gwynn hit a blistering .444 off Smoltz and only struck out once against the hard thrower . That season came in the middle of a five-year stretch where he batted .369. Padres fans have called the second game of the season, "Tony Gwynn Opening Day" for years, because of Gwynn's affection for the fans who showed up for Game 2. TIL Tony Gwynn faced Greg Maddux 107 times in his career, and - reddit He was a great player when Wade was only a good player. Since World War II, Gwynn is the only player to bat above .350 in five consecutive seasons (from 1993-97). Maddux was also a good hitting pitcher, with a career . Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=81411994, Yankees Free Agency Push Needed Post-Lockout, Ten Greatest Comebacks in MLB History: #3 (2), A Complete History of the Major League Baseball Playoffs. The next closest guy only got him 6 times. 7 ridiculous Tony Gwynn stats | theScore.com in a 162 game span covering the strike year of 1994 and the first half of 1995, Tony Gwynn hit over .400. Yes, he hit better against RHP in his career (.345 as opposed to .325 against southpaws), but as Gwynn got older, he got better, not worse, at hitting left-handers. 429 career average and he NEVER struck out against the Hall of Fame hurler. Hall of Fame pitcher Randy Johnson vs. Hall of Fame hitter Tony Gwynn in the 1998 NLDS: San Diego Padres vs. Houston Astros.Just a great piece of hitting vs.. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. The greatest lineups ever? There are so many great stretches, but amazingly in 1997, he got maybe as hot as hes ever been with the stick for a long stretch of time, and he did it twice. Gwynn hit .415 in those 107 PAs. Greg Maddux Stats, News, Bio | ESPN Nolan had had the best stats against him and Tony still rocked him. He was 39-for-91 off the right-hander, with eight doubles and a triple. In fact, Gwynn owns the top three single-game assist tallies in Aztecs history -- with his 18 dimes against UNLV on Feb. 5, 1980, as the most. Seven of those 19 times, the batter notched a base hit; the other 12 times, the batter made an out. Tony Gwynn won eight batting titles and hit .300 in 19 of his 20 major league seasons. A few hitters, however, have had their way with Maddux since he made his major league debut in 1986. On May 10, his batting average was .429, giving him a .400 mark over the last 130 games. Greg Maddux has made a habit of handling hitters and even breaking their bats, as he did to five Cleveland Indians in Game 1 of the World Series. Tony Gwynn is the most proficient batter since Ted Williams The Los Angeles Lakers star James, who is currently sidelined with a foot injury, tweeted, You can unsubscribe anytime. No 3,000-hit man who was born after 1900 had a higher lifetime batting average than Gwynn (.338). He told The Washington Post that if a pitcher can change speeds, every hitter is helpless, limited by human vision. But Gwynn wasnt done showing off his old bat. #Padres Tony Gwynn faced Greg Maddux 107 times in his career, more than any other pitcher; Gwynn batted .415, Maddux never struck him out. There were two strikeout specialists who got Gwynn on strikes more than a few times: Nolan Ryan and Dwight Gooden. He batted at least .300 against 32 of those 38 pitchers, including Tom Glavine, Nolan Ryan, John Smoltz and Orel Hershiser. And he was proud of that. Here's Maddux on how he gripped the baseball. High School Sports. On the mound was the imposing presence of the Astros' right-handed flamethrower 38-year-old future Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan - who already had 241 MLB wins . Throughout his 20 years in the league, Gwynn would wield his bat and give opposing pitchers nightmares while putting up astounding numbers on the stat sheet. Tony Eusebio gives Houston an early lead with an RBI single off Greg Maddux. Gwynn's .338 career batting average is the highest in the expansion era -- and it's not even that close, as Gwynn sits 10 points ahead of Boggs, in second. Pro Sports. Fantasy baseball: Which prospects have fantasy value in 2023? Evan Thompson is a member of the Roland Hemond (AZ) Chapter of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR). On the morning of June 11th his mark was at .409 after another three-hit game against St. Louis at Qualcomm Stadium the night before. Gwynn's 60th celebrated all day, Sat. No surprise, six-time NL batting champion Tony Gwynn is among the best against the four-time Cy Young winner. Bob Gibson et Pedro Martinez et Greg Maddux sont venus vous battre. . Sure enough, while Gwynn and Boggs have nearly equal Offensive RAA according to B-Ref (432/430) and Fangraphs (401.5/399), their contextual offense is much more lopsided, with Tony having a 56/36.8 WPA lead at B-Ref, and a 57.85/36.97 lead at Fangraphs. He struck out only three times (two to Glavine, two to Smoltz and NEVER against Maddux or Pedro). Tony Gwynn. But Gwynn also extended that success to other fine pitchers, such as Maddux's teammate John Smoltz. Tony Gwynn and Greg Maddux | AztecMesa He faced Greg Maddux 107 times, hit .415, and never struck out. Greg Maddux: Baseball Pitcher And Four-Time Cy Young Award Winner Its mind-blowing. We kid you not. Gwynn doubled in the first off Greg Brummett (who was making one of his only 13 starts in the major leagues). We will never know, but he was hitting like a demon as the weather got warmer and he seemed to have as good a chance as any batter in several decades. Tony Gwynn, then going on 26 and . Barry Bonds TONY GWYNN Jeff Bagwell Ozzie Smith Greg Maddux PSA Auto Baseball. Against the Braves' Hall of Fame trio, Gwynn fared pretty well. Here's Why Tony Gwynn Was One Of The Greatest Hitters Ever. Here are nine incredible facts and stats from the career of Tony Gwynn. CLICK for the full story on how Kris Bryant got pranked by Greg Maddux: http://win.gs/MadduxPrankReigning baseball MVP and World Series hero Kris Bryant th. We'll be proud to tell our grandchildren we did. No hitter can tell the difference in speed of different pitches, Maddux told Thomas Boswell, except that goddamned Tony Gwynn.. Against Randy Johnson, however, Gwynn slashed .111/.111/.167 for a .278 OPS with no walks and five strikeouts . His 45 games with at least four hits is 10th all-time (since 1954), and ranks fourth among left-handed batters behind Wade Boggs, George Brett, and Rod Carew. So mind-blowing, in fact, that it seems too good to be true. Baseball Mythbusters: Greg Maddux and the 3-0 Count Greg Maddux (94 ABs) and Pedro Martinex (135 ABs) never recorded a K against the Padres outfielder. They can identify pitches if there are different release points or if a curveball starts with an upward hump as it leaves the pitchers hand. Gwynn has seven of those seasons, the most of any player in that span. MLB: Tony Gwynn y sus increbles nmeros vs Pedro Martnez y Greg Maddux. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Gwynn was hitting .390 as late as August 5, 1997, but cooled in late August and September and settled for a .372 average and his eighth batting title. Those 13 walks are the most anyone has drawn. Maddux was one of the best pitchers who pitched exclusively in the Live Ball Era. His streak of 18 consecutive .300 seasons from 1983 until 2000 is only surpassed by Ty Cobb's run of 23 straight years. By Tony Gwynn. While most left-handed batters are declining and being rested against southpaws in their twilight years, Gwynn was punishing them. Mr. Padre Captain Video . You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. He had at least two hits in his first five games and hit safely in his first twelve. Ace of MLB Stats (@AceballStats) June 16, 2014. Greg Maddux - Baseball-Reference.com So, as a result, in 287 plate appearances against Hall of Famers Maddux/Glavine/Smoltz, Gwynn only struck out three times while hitting .381. Only once. In those 20,421 at-bats, only 310 hitters saw a 3-0 count. . As we outlined in #2 above, Gwynn tore apart Greg Maddux to the tune of a .429 career average and he NEVER struck out against the Hall of Fame hurler. Greg Maddux debuted on 9/3/1986 and was inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame in 2014 by the BBWAA. There is also a line called Unknown count there are 321 plate appearances where we dont know what the count was on the final pitch. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Only 644 (that we know of; we are missing data for 1,166 batters) saw a 3-0 count and 153 came on intentional walks. Gwynn played both baseball and basketball at San Diego State, and he still owns several records in basketball for the Aztecs. That brought up Gwynn, hitting better than .500 lifetime against the Cub ace. But Gwynn also extended that success to other fine pitchers, such as Madduxs teammate John Smoltz. The righthander was discussing how changing speeds and having control are far more important than velocity, because no hitter can tell the exact speed of a pitch. Neither Pedro Martinez nor Greg Maddux ever struck him out.Maddux faced Gwynn 107 times and Gwynn hit .415 off Maddux. Gwynn batted .331/.371/.426. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, The subreddit for the bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players. Tony Gwynn | San Diego | Major League Baseball | Yahoo! Sports In his 20 seasons, Gwynn posted 45 games in which he had at least four hits: 35 with four hits, nine with five hits, and one with six hits. Greg Maddux once explained that you could trick any hitter into not being able to read the speed of a pitch"Except for that fucking Tony Gwynn." G/O Media may get a commission 13% off Aztec Sports and Conference Discussions. Keep in mind that this data only goes back to 1988, so we must adjust batters faced to 19,576 and intentional walks to 162. Dodgers' Friedman hopes to retain Urias: 'We love having Jul Report: Padres expected to approach Soto, Hader about extens Maeda throws 2 scoreless innings despite Rays hearing PitchC Tatis: 'No wrong answers' for how Padres construct lineup, Report: Britton, Hand among relievers Cubs considering, Yankees' Boone: Stanton can have 'massive season' if healthy, Royals sign Jackie Bradley Jr. to minor-league contract. tony gwynn Than Had Was Toni The Todays Greates And Walked Into . Reality: Greg Maddux faced 20,421 batters during his career. Would love your thoughts, please comment. He is the author of A Complete History of the Major League Baseball Playoffs and has covered the Arizona Diamondbacks for Last Word on Baseball since 2019. The bad news is they are all in slightly cryptic puzzles. But his feats are as amazing today as they were back then. - Wikipedia Gwynn, a Hall of Famer and 15-time All Star, is one of the greatest pure hitters to ever play the game. Padres history (April 11): Gwynn and Co. halt Greg Maddux's road run Ty Cobb, Rogers Hornsby and Al Simmons did so before him. Gwynn batted .300 in every season but his rookie year, giving him a record 19 straight seasons above .300. Before signing with the Atlanta Braves prior to the 1993 season, his lowest walk rate for a season was 6.2% (1991). Nine amazing facts from the career of Tony Gwynn Ryan faced Gwynn 67 times and fanned Tony nine times (the most by any pitcher), but Gwynn still managed to hit over .300 against The Express. Gwynn faced Greg Maddux 107 times in his career more than any other pitcher. Even our favorite pitching robot, Greg Maddux, had this to say about him: Sad about Tony Gwynn's passing. Sithi select. There are batting, pitching, and fielding stats available for every player on the site. fun fact: Mark Reynolds struck out 434 times from 09-10. the same amount as Tony struck out in 20 years. He faced Maddux, Smoltz, Glavine, and Pedro Martinez a combined 323 times, and only struck out in 3 of those plate appearances. I dont know that much about baseball but I wonder why Tony Gwynns WAR ranking is so low. More consistently than most major-league . Mike Trout Results of Baseball Roundtable Survey on 2023 MLB Rules Changes, Book Review The Greatest Summer in Baseball History: How the 73 Season Changed Us Forever, Triple Crown Moundsmen Big Names with Big Seasons, A Look at MLB Triple Crown Winners Starting with Three-for-Three Oscar Charleston. 7. We cant know for sure how many of the 1986-87 hitters faced a 30 count, but chances are good that the percentage is greater than or equal to his subsequent seasons in Chicago. For the 20-game batting streak in May and June, Gwynn hit an incredible .494 (39-for-79) with a .534 on-base percentage. He was the second batter in the top of the first inning, as his Giants took on the Houston Astros. Fun/impressive fact: In 107 PAs, Maddux never struck out Tony Gwynn. They can be viewed by season or over an entire career. We all know that batting average is not the only way (or even the best way) to measure a hitters effectiveness. Tony Gwynn had 287 plate appearances against Greg Maddux, Tom - reddit Myth: Greg Maddux faced 20,421 batters during his career. With the specter of a strike hanging over the game, he ramped it up in August, hitting .475 in the 10 games before the game was stopped due to the labor strife. Even in his era, Gwynns contact rate was far and away the best of the great hitters. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. **For the best user experience, we recommend disabling the Reddit redesign. How They Match Up: Maddux vs. Top Hitters - Los Angeles Times Answer (1 of 8): I would say Tony Gwynn. Tony Gwynn Baseball Stats by Baseball Almanac By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. The 7 Most Absurd Sports Stats/Facts - Student Union Sports In 293 of those, the batter walked; 153 were intentional. Greg Maddux could put a baseball through a Life Saver if you asked him. It occurred on August 4, 1993, against the Giants on a weekday evening at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego. Gwynn faced Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux, Pedro Martinez and John Smoltz a combined 323 times. For two decades, Tony Gwynn was also the best friend those of us in the media-genius prediction business ever had. How Tony Gwynn Cracked Baseball's Code And Became A Legend - Deadspin Against Nolan Ryan, Gwynn hit .302, and he famously never struck out against Maddux in 91 at-bats. Of course, it's not like Gwynn's numbers against Maddux were an anomaly. Tony Gwynn was the only player to have struck out Maddux 107 times. In those three seasons, Maddux faced 3,060 batters, and 158 roughly 5.1% saw a 30 count. Greg Maddux faced Tony Gwynn 107 times, walked him intentionally 7 times, and never once struck him out. Maddux summed it up perfectly. Defensively Wade was very underrated as a third baseman. Greg Maddux has made a habit of handling hitters and even breaking their bats, as he did to five Cleveland Indians in Game 1 of the World Series. From 1988 to 2001, Gwynn hit .302 in two-strike counts. There was only one Tony Gwynn - SBNation.com He was that good. From 1993-2001, the last nine years of his career, when he was 33-41 years old, Gwynn hit .349 against left-handed pitching. In the third inning, Gwynn singled to right. MLB: Five Hilariously Absurd Stats to Brighten Your Day Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. He thinks he might have an idea of why hes receiving some newfound fan support., An embarrassing graphic involving Russell Westbrook has gone viral. Mark Loretta had 208 hits in 2004. See his various events you wish you could of seen. With the All-Star game in San Diego this season, it's impossible not to think about San Diego . Gwynn also had incredible success against many of the best strikeout pitchers. Hit .372 at the age of 37 in 1997, and only struck out 28 times in 592 at-bats. While others hit (and will continue to hit) for more power, no other hitter in my lifetime has been better at using his bat to get on A few moments later, Pedro Martinez (not THAT Pedro, the other Pedro Martinez), laid down a suicide squeeze that scored Ricky Gutierrez with the winning run from third. Tony Gwynn had always had Greg Maddux's number. It makes sense that great players tend to provide the biggest challenge to other greats. Gwynn was without question the best pure hitter in the game of baseball in the 1980s and 1990s. On Thursday night, the Clippers blew a halftime lead and lost 115-91 to the Golden State Warriors. He batted .403/.439/.500 in Game 2 of 162. Fun Fact: Tony Gwynn vs. Greg Maddux/Pedro Martinez: .388 BA 0 K's - reddit The Padres' Hall-of-Fame right fielder faced the Braves' Hall of Famer more than any other pitcher in his career . And one final strikeout-related stat that blows the mind: Tony Gwynn hit .302 with two strikes on him. chaque match, chaque manche, chaque frappeur pendant 25 saisons, Ryan a opt pour le retrait au bton. Gwynn faced Greg Maddux 107 times in his career -- more than any other pitcher. The numbers he put up are staggering, especially considering he played in an era that was increasingly dominated by big swings and steroid home runs. Gwynn hit below .300 just once in his career, his rookie season. You just cant do it, Maddux said. Runs scored is an opportunity stat, and it really has little to do with how good a player is. Since Gwynn debuted in 1982, a hitter has finished a season with a batting average above .350 only 46 times. This leaves 845 batters unaccounted for. I read earlier that in 323 combined career PAs against Maddux, Glavine, Smoltz, and Pedro Martinez, Gwynn struck out only three times. Gwynns four games of five hits or more in 1993 are tied with Ichiro Suzuki (2004) for the most by one player in a season since 1970. He dazzled batters with his precision and command. ESPN.com: MLB - The Book on Maddux, Glavine Chipper Jones pummeled Randy Johnson. One of the most useful research tools on Baseball Reference is the Splits data. Against Maddux, Tom Glavine, and Smoltz . Tony Gwynn is my favorite baseball player and he always will be. Right-handed batters hit worse against righties and left-handed batters hit worse against lefties. In 1995 the baseball season was delayed and didnt start until late April. The pitcher that Gwynn faced most often was Greg Maddux, which makes sense since the two were in the National League together for 15 seasons. He hit .415 (in 107 plate appearances) vs. Greg Maddux, .303 against Tom Glavine (105 PA) and .444 against Smoltz (75 PA). About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How YouTube works Test new features NFL Sunday Ticket Press Copyright . Tony Gwynn is the greatest pure hitter I have ever witnessed. Most players have a disadvantage when they are facing pitchers of the same stripe as them. . This row, however, does not mean that there were 312 plate appearances that saw a 30 count. Amazing strikeout stat No. If Gwynns 20-year career were split into two careers, 10 seasons apiece, he would rank first and second in franchise history in runs, hits, total bases and doubles. If Maddux was the robot of pitchers, then Tony Gwynn is the robot of hitters. Greg Maddux Stats & Facts - This Day In Baseball If you were going to do it you had to get him the first time you saw him (through lack of unfamiliarity) or by having a trick pitch of some sort. Greg Maddux Baseball Stats by Baseball Almanac About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How YouTube works Test new features NFL Sunday Ticket Press Copyright . Of his 18 total awards, Maddux won 10 with the Braves, five with the Cubs, two with the Dodgers and one with the Padres. He won 18 Gold Gloves, the record for any position. Tony Gwynn - redszone.com **, Press J to jump to the feed. Tony Gwynn has the highest career batting average among players whose career started after 1947 (baseball first integrated), no surprises there . Heyward has looked good early in spring training, which has led to talk that he is likely to make the, LeBron James took some time this week to send positive thoughts to a veteran NBA reporter while also managing to make it about himself. A few years ago, a meme surfaced featuring a crazy Greg . He wasnt just slapping the ball either, Gwynn had eight doubles, two triples, and two home runs off Smoltz. Even better man and family man. Registered: Jul 13, 2005. 1994 Quality Starts. In 36 pitcher/batter battles, Pedro Martinez never struck out Gwynn. A. Aaron Judge; Aaron Nola; Adam Dunn; Adam Wainwright; Adrian Beltre; . This statement further cements his reputation as a control artist. Maddux is also one of only ten pitchers who has both 300 wins and 3,000 strikeouts. 19. On 45 separate occasions, Gwynn recorded four hits in a game -- 11 more times than he recorded a multi-strikeout game. WTTF: Gwynn & Maddux | The Bench I've updated those numbers now, in the wake of the awful news of Tony Gwynn's death. America's Pastime. Tony Gwynn vs. Pitchers | Stathead.com Also, Mark Reynolds had the same number as strikeouts in 2009 and 2010 that Tony Gwynn had in 20 years. Tony Gwynn's 2 Hitting Secrets: Work and More Work - The New York Times Gwynns career worst strikeout rate was 6.9% in 1988 when he struck out 40 times in 578 at bats. Column: Tony Gwynn might not recognize baseball today, but of course he Twins' Balazovic had mouth wired shut after 'sucker punch' f MLB sets up local media group, could broadcast 17 teams, Report: Padres add Odor on minor-league deal, The ultimate, personalized mobile sports experience, 7 Cubs pitchers combine to no-hit Padres in spring game, Red Sox use shift loophole to counter Twins' Gallo, Top plays in World Baseball Classic history, Scherzer tests pitch clock limits, gets quick-pitch balk, Ex-Met Wright: Judge facing 'pressure' with new contract, captaincy.