Growing up in Santa Rosa, Calif., Matt Ginella would fall asleep to baseball games on the radio. And although he lived an hour north of San Francisco, his favorite team was the San Diego Padres. His favorite player: Tony Gwynn. Now Ginella lives in San Diego, and, along with his son, listens to Padres games on the radio in which Tony Gwynn Jr. is the analyst. So, to get a chance to produce a three-part tribute podcast on the life and legacy of “Mr. Padre,” is a little boy’s dream come true. In episode one, the emphasis is on Gwynn’s athleticism, mind, preparation, consistency, dedication, humility and his secret weapon: his wife. The interviews include Gwynn Jr., Greg Maddux, John Smoltz, Ryne Sandberg, Trevor Hoffman, Ken Griffey Jr., and Tom Verducci. This collection of Hall of Famers reflects on some of Gwynn’s outlandish stats, what Griffey refers to as “Bugs Bunny Numbers.” Smoltz says Gwynn “hunted hits” and tells the story of Gwynn breaking up one of his bids for a no-hitter. And Maddux explains why he’s actually pleased that Gwynn only hit .415 against him. “It was up to .485 [laughs], so I actually don’t feel too bad about the .415 to be honest with you.”

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