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Friday, April 13, 2001
Winfield selects Padres for Hall induction
Associated Press
Dave Winfield will enter the Hall of Fame as a San Diego Padre,
choosing his first team instead of the New York Yankees.
|  | | Dave Winfield, seen here in 1974, played 1,117 games for the Padres in his career. |
"I had no idea when I was elected in January that I would have
to think about it and look at this for so long, and from so many
ways," Winfield said in a statement released by the Hall on
Friday. "This has been an extremely tough decision."
Winfield spent the first eight years of his career in San Diego,
making four All-Star games. He will be the first Hall of Famer to
have the Padres' logo on his plaque.
"I went with the team that gave me my very first opportunity,"
he said. "All of my 'firsts' happened in San Diego and that is
where I developed as a player."
There were arguments for other teams, most notably the Yankees –
the team with which Winfield gained national recognition. Owner
George Steinbrenner made a big effort in recent years to patch up
his differences with Winfield in hopes of getting a 17th Hall of
Famer to have a Yankees logo on his plaque.
Winfield also had notable moments with other teams. He delivered
the game-winning hit in the 1992 World Series with the Toronto Blue
Jays, and got his 3,000th hit with his hometown Minnesota Twins.
He also played for the California Angels and Cleveland Indians
before ending his 22-year career in 1995.
The Hall of Fame has the final choice of which logo will be on
the plaque, but Winfield was allowed to choose because the majority
of his career was split between the Padres (1,117 games) and
Yankees (1,172).
"This is good news," Padres president Larry Lucchino said.
"It's a good day for the Padres. We are proud that Winfield has
identified San Diego and the Padres as his baseball home.
"There's something about your first baseball home, kind of like
your first love in life, it stays with you forever, if you're
lucky."
Winfield is on the Padres' board of directors and was inducted
into the team's hall of fame last year. On Saturday night, the
Padres will retire his No. 31 and give fans Winfield replica jersey
T-shirts.
Winfield will enter the Hall in August with former Minnesota
Twins teammate Kirby Puckett, Bill Mazeroski and Negro leagues
player Hilton Smith.
Puckett will go in with the Twins' logo on his plaque, Mazeroski
will be inducted as a Pittsburgh Pirate and Smith will be in as a
Kansas City Monarch during ceremonies Aug. 5, in Cooperstown, N.Y.
A multisport standout at the University of Minnesota, Winfield
was drafted by the Padres, the Minnesota Vikings of the NFL, the
Atlanta Hawks of the NBA, and the Utah Stars of the now-defunct
ABA.
One of baseball's first players to sign a long-term,
multimillion dollar contract, Winfield had a long-running feud with
Steinbrenner, who sarcastically labeled him "Mr. May," to
contrast his postseason struggles with the success of Hall of Famer
Reggie Jackson, who earned the nickname "Mr. October."
Winfield never spent a day in the minor leagues and became a
12-time All-Star. He won five Gold Gloves in the outfield.
Winfield hit .283 with 465 home runs and 3,110 hits. He's one of
only seven players with 3,000 hits and 400 home runs.
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