Former San Diego Padre great Tony Gwynn passed away this morning at the age of 54.  Gwynn had been battling cancer of the salivary glands since 2011, which he ascribed to a lifetime use of chewing tobacco.  After a 20 year career, all with the Padres, that ended with 3141 hits and a lifetime batting average of .338 following the 2001 season, Gwynn was a first ballot Hall of Famer in 2007.

I only saw Gwynn play once in person, during a July 8, 1985 NLCS rematch between the Padres and the Cubs.  Gwynn went 2-5 on the day as the Padres once again bested the North Siders.

Over my nearly-40 years, many of the sporting heroes of my youth have passed away.  For some reason, this one has hit me particularly hard.  Cancer shows itself once again to be a heartless bitch that doesn’t care who you are or what you’ve accomplished.