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SAN DIEGO -- Tony Gwynn could handle a bat like few other major leaguers, whether it was driving the ball through the "5. Jerian Grant Magic Jersey .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. Terrence Ross Magic Jersey . Team officials did not indicate the extent of the injury Saturday, simply listing Rose with "left knee soreness." Rose has played two preseason games without any sign of problems. The first NBA game in South America now will be missing its biggest star. Evan Fournier Jersey . As for regular Olympic spectators, theyre being warned that most travel insurance policies wont cover acts of terrorism or war. The Games in southern Russia, which run from Feb. 7-23, are being staged amid unprecedented security and under global warnings of danger. http://www.magicauthentic.com/kids-vince-carter-magic-jersey/ . The announcement was made by the hall on Friday, March 14. She joins Switzerlands Denise Biellmann as this years inductees to the Hall, based in Colorado Springs, CO. ARLINGTON, Texas -- Derek Norris drove in three runs with a pair of doubles, Scott Kazmir outpitched Martin Perez and the Oakland Athletics beat the Texas Rangers 9-3 on Tuesday night. The As went ahead to stay on Norris two-run double in the first off Perez (4-1), who had pitched 26 consecutive scoreless innings over his previous three starts. The left-hander had thrown three-hit shutouts his last two games, including at Oakland six days earlier. Kazmir (4-0) tied for the AL lead in wins. He needed 95 pitches to get through five innings, but left with a 9-3 lead. The lefty struck out four and walked one. When Norris added an RBI double to make it 4-0 in the third, the As already had six hits off Perez, who started the night with an AL-best 1.42 ERA. The eight runs allowed by Perez were two more than his combined total his first five starts, and his ERA more than doubled to 2.95. He struck out three and walked three in 4 2-3 innings. Oakland, swept in three games at home by the Rangers last week, has won the first two games in this series that started with the teams tied atop the AL West. At 17-10, the As have the best record in the American League. Texas (15-12) has its first three-game losing streak this season. As right-hander Sonny Gray, who lost in the matchup against Perez last week, reached four wins by throwing a three-hit shutout in the series opener. Gray beat Rangers ace Yu Darvish, who with 3 1-3 innings had the shortest start in three seasons since coming from Japan. Perrez and Torontos Mark Buehrle were the only other AL pitchers who went into Tuesdays games with four wins. Custom Orlando Magic Jerseys. When Craig Gentry led off the second with a triple, the As already had three hits -- matching through seven batters what they got against Perez last week. Gentry scored on a groundout by Josh Reddick, who added a two-run single in Oaklands five-run outburst in the fifth. Perez was gone after issuing a bases-loaded walk to Alberto Callaspo in the fifth. Pinch-hitter Brandon Moss then drew a bases-loaded walk on an eight-pitch at-bat against reliever Jason Frasor before Reddicks single made it 9-1. Alex Rios had an RBI double for Texas in the fourth, but was thrown out trying to come home on a groundball. After the Rangers had consecutive singles to start the fifth, Elvis Andrus sent home a run on a groundout and Prince Fielder had an RBI single. NOTES: It was Texas manager Ron Washingtons 62nd birthday. The Rangers are 0-6 in games on his birthday. ... Kazmirs ERA rose to 2.11 after he entered at 1.62, third-best in the AL. ... Oakland is 11-4 on the road, best in the AL. ... Perezs scoreless streak was the fifth-longest for a Rangers starter. ... There was delay of 1 minute, 38 seconds in the fifth for Washingtons challenge after first-base umpire Laz Diaz ruled a foul ball on Andrus liner down the right-field line just past the infield dirt. The call stood after replay, meaning there was no clear or convincing evidence to overturn it. ' ' '