@tonygwynnjr I love your dad and everything he stood for. I started off his mentor then he became mine. My sincere condolences to you all.
— Steve Garvey (@SteveGarvey6) June 16, 2014
Man. That is some powerful stuff there. Funny thing about Garvey… people think that because I’m opposed Garvey’s number being retired by SD that I didn’t like him as a player. That’s not the case at all. Somewhere behind Mickey Mantle, Bo Jackson, and Tony Gwynn… Garvey sits as one of my top 10 favorite ballplayers of all-time. Just feels weird that a self-proclaimed lifelong Dodger has a number up on the batter’s eye at Petco. (He spent 14 seasons in LA, and 5 in SD… the Dodgers have NOT retired his number.)
Want to hear the most compelling argument that I’ve ever heard for retiring Garvey’s no. 6? Tony Gwynn once said that Garvey’s home run in ’84 was the most memorable moment of his career. With that career, the most memorable moment of Tony’s career wasn’t even one of Tony’s moments. Incredible. That alone tells me that maybe I should just shut up, let it go, and accept that the Padres retired his number.
-bp
[top photo: Christopher Hanewinckel-US PRESSWIRE]