Wheaties Honors Shortstop Wiz Ozzie Smith; Available Nationally, the Special-Edition Package Honors Baseball's Newest Hall of Famer.

Sports Editors/Baseball Writers & Columnists

NOTE TO MEDIA: Multimedia assets available

ST. LOUIS--(BW SportsWire)--July 24, 2002

Wheaties today unveiled a special-edition package commemorating the Hall of Fame career of shortstop Ozzie Smith at a ceremony in St. Louis.

Born in Mobile, Alabama, Smith spent his formative years in Los Angeles and was drafted by the San Diego Padres in 1977 out of Cal-Poly--San Luis Obispo. Following the 1981 season, Smith was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals, where his career flourished. A base-stealing threat and solid hitter, Smith distinguished himself with his acrobatic defensive skills, which helped propel St. Louis to three World Series appearances and one World Championship during his time with the Cardinals.

His career accomplishments are extraordinary. In 1991, he set the NL record for fewest errors in a season by a shortstop with eight. In 1992, he collected his 2,000th hit and 500th stolen base, and won his 13th consecutive Gold Glove Award to break the NL record held by Willie Mays and Roberto Clemente. And in 1994, he passed Luis Aparicio for the career assist record for a shortstop.

Smith retired after the 1996 season and the Cardinals immediately retired his jersey No. 1. In his 19 Major League seasons, he compiled a .262 batting average, 2,460 hits, 580 stolen bases, 13 Gold Glove awards, and was named to 15 All-Star teams. Smith, who becomes the 20th Major League shortstop elected to the Hall of Fame, set records for a shortstop with the most assists (8,375), most double plays (1,590), most total chances accepted (12,624), most years with 500 or more assists (8), and most years leading the league in assists and chances accepted (8).

"It's obviously a wonderful tribute to be elected to the Hall of Fame," Smith said. "Celebrating my career with this new Wheaties box makes it even more gratifying. This has to be every young ballplayer's dream come true."

Smith joins many of the greatest baseball players of all time as Wheaties cover athletes, including Aaron, Ruth, Gehrig, Robinson, Di Maggio, Williams, Mays, Bench, Puckett and Winfield. Through the years, several other notable members of the St. Louis Cardinals franchise have appeared on the Wheaties box, including John "Pepper" Martin, Paul and Dizzy Dean, Joe "Ducky" Medwick, Johnny Mize, Marty Marion, Stan Musial, Tim McCarver, and Mark McGwire.

"Ozzie Smith is arguably the best defensive shortstop who ever played the game," said Wheaties Marketing Manager Brian Kittelson. "We're thrilled to pay tribute to him upon his induction into the Hall of Fame. He certainly makes a fitting addition to the roster of great ball players to appear on our package. Plus, Ozzie's contributions off the field are absolutely remarkable."

The special-edition 18-ounce Wheaties package marks Smith's first appearance on the fabled orange box and will be available nationally beginning in early August.

Wheaties began its association with sports in the mid-1930s with a sign on the left field wall at Nicollet Park near downtown Minneapolis. General Mills' broadcast deal with the minor league Minneapolis Millers on WCCO Radio included the large signboard that Wheaties would use to introduce its new advertising slogan: "Wheaties--The Breakfast of Champions." From that rather humble beginning, Wheaties has built a storied heritage that includes many of the greatest athletic champions of all time.

Other members of the Wheaties family include Frosted Wheaties, Wheaties Raisin Bran, and Wheaties Energy Crunch.

The Breakfast of Champions(R), Wheaties(R), Frosted Wheaties(R), Wheaties Raisin Bran(R) and Wheaties Energy Crunch(R) are registered trademarks of General Mills, Inc.

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