SAN DIEGO -- Tony Gwynn could handle a bat like few other major leaguers, whether it was driving the ball through the "5.5 hole" between third base and shortstop or hitting a home run off the facade in Yankee Stadium in the World Series. He was a craftsman at the plate, whose sweet left-handed swing made him one of baseballs greatest hitters. Gwynn loved San Diego. San Diego loved "Mr. Padre" right back. Gwynn, a Hall of Famer and one of the greatest athletes in San Diegos history, died Monday of oral cancer, a disease he attributed to years of chewing tobacco. He was 54. "Our city is a little darker today without him but immeasurably better because of him," Mayor Kevin Faulconer said in a statement. In a rarity in pro sports, Gwynn played his whole career with the Padres, choosing to stay in the city where he was a two-sport star in college, rather than leaving for bigger paychecks elsewhere. His terrific hand-eye co-ordination made him one of the games greatest pure hitters. He had 3,141 hits -- 18th on the all-time list -- a career .338 average and won eight batting titles to tie Honus Wagners NL record. He struck out only 434 times in 9,288 career at-bats. He played in San Diegos only two World Series -- batting a combined .371 -- and was a 15-time All-Star. He had a memorable home run in Game 1 of the 1998 World Series off fellow San Diegan David Wells, and scored the winning run in the 1994 All-Star Game despite a bum knee. Gwynn never hit below .309 in a full season. He spread out his batting titles from 1984, when he batted .351, to 1997, when he hit .372. Gwynn was hitting .394 when a players strike ended the 1994 season, denying him a shot at becoming the first player to hit .400 since San Diego native Ted Williams hit .406 in 1941. Gwynn befriended Williams and the two loved to talk about hitting. Gwynn steadied Williams when he threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the 1999 All-Star Game at Bostons Fenway Park. Fellow Hall of Famer Greg Maddux tweeted, "Tony Gwynn was the best pure hitter I ever faced! Condolences to his family." Gwynn was known for his hearty laugh and warm personality. Every day at 4 p.m., Gwynn sat in the Padres dugout and talked baseball or anything else with the media. Tim Flannery, who was teammates with Gwynn on the Padres 1984 World Series team and later was on San Diegos coaching staff, said hell "remember the cackle to his laugh. He was always laughing, always talking, always happy." "The baseball world is going to miss one of the greats, and the world itself is going to miss one of the great men of mankind," said Flannery, the San Francisco Giants third base coach. "He cared so much for other people. He had a work ethic unlike anybody else, and had a childlike demeanour of playing the game just because he loved it so much." Gwynn had been on a medical leave since late March from his job as baseball coach at San Diego State, his alma mater. He died at a hospital in suburban Poway, agent John Boggs said. "He was in a tough battle and the thing I can critique is hes definitely in a better place," Boggs said. "He suffered a lot. He battled. Thats probably the best way I can describe his fight against this illness he had, and he was courageous until the end." Gwynns wife, Alicia, and other family members were at his side when he died, Boggs said. Gwynns son, Tony Jr., was with the Philadelphia Phillies, who later placed him on the bereavement list. "Today I lost my Dad, my best friend and my mentor," Gwynn Jr. tweeted. "Im gonna miss u so much pops. Im gonna do everything in my power to continue to ... Make u proud!" Gwynn had two operations for cancer in his right cheek between August 2010 and February 2012. The second surgery was complicated, with surgeons removing a facial nerve because it was intertwined with a tumour inside his right cheek. They grafted a nerve from Gwynns neck to help him eventually regain facial movement. Gwynn had been in and out of the hospital and had spent time in a rehab facility, Boggs said. "For more than 30 years, Tony Gwynn was a source of universal goodwill in the national pastime, and he will be deeply missed by the many people he touched," Commissioner Bud Selig said. Fans paid their respects by visiting the statue of Gwynn on a grassy knoll just beyond the outfield at Petco Park. Gwynn was last with his San Diego State team on March 25 before beginning a leave of absence. His Aztecs rallied around a Gwynn bobblehead doll they would set near the bat rack during games, winning the Mountain West Conference tournament and advancing to the NCAA regionals. Last week, SDSU announced it was extending Gwynns contract one season. The Aztecs play at Tony Gwynn Stadium, which was built in the mid-1990s with a $4 million donation by then-Padres owner John Moores. Gwynn was born in Los Angeles on May 9, 1960, and attended high school in Long Beach. He was a two-sport star at San Diego State in the late 1970s and early 1980s, playing point guard for the basketball team -- he still holds the game, season and career record for assists -- and in the outfield on the baseball team. Gwynn always wanted to play in the NBA, until realizing during his final year at San Diego State that baseball would be the ticket to the pros. He was drafted by both the Padres (third round) and San Diego Clippers (10th round) on the same day in 1981. After spending parts of just two seasons in the minor leagues, he made his big league debut on July 19, 1982. Gwynn had two hits that night. After Gwynn hit a double, all-time hits leader Pete Rose, who been trailing the play, said to him: "Hey, kid, what are you trying to do, catch me in one night?" In a career full of highlights, Gwynn had his 3,000th hit on Aug. 9, 1999, a first-inning single to right field at Montreals Olympic Stadium. Gwynn retired after the 2001 season and became a volunteer assistant coach at SDSU in 2002. He took over as head coach after that season. He and Cal Ripken Jr. -- who spent his entire career with the Baltimore Orioles -- were inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2007. "I had no idea that all the things in my career were going to happen," Gwynn said shortly before being inducted. "I sure didnt 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." Gwynn also is survived by a daughter, Anisha. Boggs said services were pending. Stan Smith Offerta .A caravan greeted the former Boston Red Sox pitcher at the airport and took him to a public park in Santo Domingo, where a crowd lined a 19-mile stretch of highway to catch a glimpse of him.Once at the park, Martinez went on stage accompanied by players David Ortiz and Robinson Cano as merengue music played and fireworks lit up the sky. Scarpe Stan Smith Outlet . PETERSBURG, Fla. http://www.stansmithscontate.it/ .com) - Marc Gasol and the Grizzlies withstood 18 Dallas 3-pointers, as Memphis took control in the third quarter and fended off a Mavericks rally en route to a 114-105 win in a Southwest Division showdown. Scarpe Stan Smith Scontate . While Minnesota takes aim at its eighth win of November, the Canadiens will try to post just their third victory in nine games this month. Stan Smith Scontate . TSN 1290s Jordan Cieciwa, Big Marv and Toby are here to give their predictions on who will leave with the belt and who will take some of the other key bouts on the card. Johny Hendricks vs.TORONTO -- Jose Bautista had a game to remember. The Toronto Blue Jays right-fielder had his 15th homer of the season, hit into a triple play, threw a runner out at home and was interfered with by a fan as he tried to catch a foul ball in the ninth that resulted in an out after a video review. To top it off, the Blue Jays defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 3-1 for their sixth win in a row on Friday. "I think its got to be the most eventful game Ive had in my career," said Bautista, who also extended his hit streak to 12 games. "Id like to see if anyone can find somebody else with that combination of plays." Right-hander Marcus Stroman pitched into the seventh inning in his second major-league start, both of them wins. He walked off to a standing ovation. "Its pretty special," Stroman said. "I tried to do my best tough guy impersonation and tried not to smile. But it was definitely pretty special walking off." Bautista lined into a triple play in the sixth inning, the seventh time a triple play had beeen turned by a Blue Jays opponent. It was the first triple play against Toronto since May 12, 2008, in the second game of a doubleheader at Cleveland. "Its the first time its happened to me," Bautista said. Stroman (3-0) held the Cardinals to one run on seven hits, two walks and a hit batter while striking out seven. He was lifted after a leadoff single in the seventh by Tony Cruz. Casey Janssen pitched the ninth inning for his 11th save of the season. Janssens second out came as a result of fan interference when Bautista tried to catch a foul ball hit by Cruz. The play was reviewed and Cruz was called out. "I just felt that somebody stuck a glove right in my face," Bautista said, "And I felt there was some contact there that prevented me from making the play. Obviously (the fan) was caught up in the emotion, just like everybody else. The ball is coming to him, he wants a ball hit by a major-leaguer at a major-league baseball game. Hes not thinking about the play the way I am so you cant blame him for it. But again it doesnt matter they reviewed it and made the right call." Right-hander Lance Lynn (6-4) took the loss, allowing six hits -- including two home runs -- and four walks while striking out six in five innings. The Cardinals (31-31) scored a run in the first. Matt Carpenter led off with a walk and took third on Matt Hollidays ground-rule double to right. Allen Craig singled to right to score Carpenter but Holliday was thrown out at home by Bautista. "I think its always a good play when you can throw anybody out and prevent a run." Bautista said. "Whether (Stroman) needed that at that moment in the game thats more for him to answer, not me. I think he still would have pitched a pretty good game. "The ball was hit to me at the right rate of speed. And I had a chance to throw him out. Dioner (Navarro) made a play terrific play, a fine play because my throw wasnt as good as it could have been and he still managed to catch the balll as it was going toward the runner and stay away from the running lane that they now have to give and still tag him out.ddddddddddddSo that was a pretty good play." Second baseman Brett Lawrie followed it up with a fine play on Yadier Molinas grounder to end the inning. "That is just huge momentum and puts you back into your groove and kind of lets you know your guys are behind you." Stroman said. "Right out of the gate he struggled a little bit but then he started using all his pitches," manager John Gibbons said. "He was primarily pumping the fastballs in there and when he started using his breaking ball, his change-up a little bit, it made all the difference in the world." St. Louis manager Mike Matheny acknowledged that Stroman kept the Cardinals hitters on their heels. "He kept us off balance," said Mike Matheny. "He had good life on his fastball. We saw a lot of swings and misses, probably more swings and misses than what we saw on any kind of video we had on him, with his breaking ball. I thought his breaking ball was more of a weapon today than what wed seen in the past." The Blue Jays (38-24) left the bases loaded in the bottom of the first and stranded two in the second. But they tied it 1-1 in the third when Bautista led off with a homer, a high drive to left on a 2-1 fastball. Lawrie lined his 11th homer of the season to centre on a 2-1 fastball with two out in the fifth to give the Blue Jays a 2-1 lead. Bautista hit into a triple play in the sixth inning on a liner to second baseman Descalso. The Blue Jays loaded the bases against right-handed reliever Seth Maness with singles from Anthony Gose and Jose Reyes and Carpenters error on a grounder to third by Melky Cabrera. Bautista lined a 2-0 sinker to Descalso who threw to shortstop Jhonny Peralta who caught Reyes off second. Peralta then threw to Craig who stepped on first before Cabrera could return to the base. "I did everything I could," Bautista said. "I laid off two bad pitches, swung at the one in the zone, hit it hard and it went right at somebody." The Blue Jays scored a run in the eighth. Lawrie and Navarro singled against right-hander Jason Motte to put runners at first and third. Reyes singled to right to cash in Lawrie and send pinch-runner Kevin Pillar to third. NOTES: The 25th anniversary of the first baseball game at Rogers Centre, formerly SkyDome, was celebrated on Friday with former Toronto pitcher Jimmy Key throwing out the ceremonial first pitch to his one-time catcher Ernie Whitt. They formed the Blue Jays battery in the first at SkyDome on June 5, 1989, a 5-3 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers. a Cito Gaston, who managed the Blue Jays in that game, took the lineup card to the umpires before the game. a The interleague series continues Saturday with left-hander Mark Buehrle (10-1, 2.10 earned-run average) starting for Toronto against right-hander Shelby Miller (6-5, 4.06 ERA) going for the Cardinals. a Attendance was 33,528. Wholesale HoodiesNFL Shirts OutletJerseys NFL WholesaleCheap NFL Jerseys Free ShippingWholesale Jerseys CheapCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaWholesale JerseysWholesale NFL JerseysCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '