Hailed as one of the greatest athletes ever to play professional sports, Dave Winfield never spent a day in the minor leagues. A Williams Scholar at the University of Minnesota where he played Big Ten basketball and was an All-American in baseball, Winfield was voted Most Valuable Player of the 1973 College World Series as a pitcher and was then drafted number one overall by the San Diego Padres. Winfield spent the first eight seasons of his career with the Padres before signing with the New York Yankees during the 1980 offseason. In his prime years, Winfield made 12 consecutive All-Star teams, through his age 36 season in 1988.

He was not only a force at the plate, as noted by his five Silver Slugger awards, but Winfield also excelled in the outfield, earning seven Gold Glove awards too. Later in his career, Winfield drove in the winning run of the 1992 World Series for the Toronto Blue Jays and then returned to his native Minnesota two seasons later and reached the 3,000-hit milestone as a member of the Twins. He retired at age 43 after 22 major league seasons under his belt with 3,110 hits and 465 home runs. In 2001, his first year of eligibility, Winfield was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame with 84.5 percent of the votes.

Long-known for his philanthropic endeavors, Winfield became the first professional athlete to create a 501(c)(3) charitable foundation while still an active player – something that has been copied by fellow professional athletes since. The Winfield Foundation provided healthcare services, nutritional counseling, scholarships, computer literacy, and holiday dinners to children and families in need across the country. In recognition of his longstanding work throughout the community, both during and after his playing career, Winfield has received honorary Doctorate of Laws from both Syracuse University and Thomas Jefferson School of Law. In recent years Winfield has focused his efforts on assisting organizations reach their business and charitable goals through keynote presentations and lectures.

Winfield is also an accomplished author – he has published numerous books, been a syndicated columnist, and is also a frequent contributor in the New York Times and Los Angeles Times. He currently serves as Special Assistant to Tony Clark, the Executive Director of the Major League Baseball Players Association.