Osborne Earl Smith, better known as Ozzie Smith, is a retired professional baseball player who played for the San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals. He was born on December 26, 1954 in Mobile, Alabama and was one of six children born to Clovi and Marvella Smith. Smith quotes his mother as being one of the strongest positive influences in his life, and someone who always encouraged him to reach for the stars. His family moved to Los Angeles, California in 1960, when Smith was 6 years of age. He was active in many sports since his childhood, including basketball and baseball, and played on both teams at Locke High School. One of his basketball teammates was Marques Johnson, future NBA star, and on the baseball team he played with Eddie Murray, who was a future baseball star like him. He received a partial sports scholarship at California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo. During his tenure there, he was named an All American athlete and established many school records.

In 1977, he was selected in the amateur draft by the Detroit Tigers. He played in the minor leagues for one year before being transferred to the majors. His speed and agility made him one of the best fielders in the league, and starting from 1980, he won 13 consecutive Gold Glove Awards for excellence in fielding, a record which has yet to be matched or beaten. His exceptional athleticism earned him the nickname of “The Wizard of Oz”, often shortened to “The Wizard”. During his first year in the league, he finished at second place in the rankings for “National League Rookie of the Year Award”. His batting average, however, was below par and he was unable to score any home runs between 1979 to 1981.

Before the start of the 1982 season, Ozzie Smith was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals and his first year on the team, he helped them to win the World Series. His performance with the Cardinals was a marked improvement from his previous team, and he gradually improved his stats with the course of time. One of the most important runs he