Tony Gwynn's hometown erects statue in his honor

The northern San Diego County community in which baseball legend Tony Gwynn resided erected a statue in honor of the late San Diego Padres star Tuesday on what would have been his 57th birthday.

The town of Poway unveiled the memorial statue at Lake Poway Park during a ceremony. The 11-foot bronze statue displays Gwynn in a Padres' uniform and tipping his cap while holding daughter, Anisha.

Gwynn died in 2014 after a battle with salivary cancer, which he said was linked to his long-term use of chewing tobacco.

Gwynn played 20 seasons with the Padres from 1982-2001 and won eight National League batting titles. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2007.

The 15-time All-Star was the baseball coach at San Diego State, his alma mater, at the time of his death.

"Tony didn't like a lot of ceremony and didn't like a lot of praise. He was a very humble person," Gwynn's agent, John Boggs, said at Tuesday's ceremony. "He would be very touched today and appreciative of this statue ceremony."

There also is a statue of Gwynn beyond the outfield at Petco Park, the home of the Padres.