Jim Thome still close to baseball as new MLBPAA president
CHICAGO (BVM) – Jim Thome was one of the elite home run hitters during his time in MLB from the 1990s to 2000s, racking up trips around the bases with numerous teams but most notably the Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Phillies and Chicago White Sox. While there have been and are players who have hit more home runs during their careers, Thome is one of the rare ones from his era who did so without enhancements and didn’t need a ring to cement his impact on the game. Though he’s been retired for a decade, Thome has remained close to the game, working with other fellow former MLB players to continue to enjoy the game they love.
Early life and junior college career
Thome was one of five children born to an athletic family. Thome’s father would play in a paid softball league near the family’s hometown of Peoria, Illinois while his grandfather made it all the way to the minor leagues. Perhaps nobody, not even Thome himself, could pass his aunt, Carolyn Thome Hart, who is a member of the USA Softball Hall of Fame thanks to her standout career playing in Peoria.
The eventual MLB star would learn baseball from watching his dad and two older brothers, who became high school legends in their own right. During Thome’s time at Limestone High School in Bartonville, just outside of Peoria, he would continue the family tradition, earning all-state honors in both basketball and baseball.
Rather than the traditional path many eventual MLB stars take, Thome enrolled at nearby Illinois Central College, a junior college located in East Peoria. In one year at ICC, Thome would play both basketball and baseball, but the diamond was where he stood out most. The freshman was named a National Junior College Athletic Association All-American, bringing his name to a national level. Thome graduated in 1989 and in 2021 the school named both its softball and baseball fields after the legend.
MLB journey
As an unheralded junior college prospect, Thome wouldn’t be selected until the 13th round of the 1989 MLB Draft when he was picked up by the then Cleveland Indians. Two years later, Thome would debut on Sept. 4, 1991 and would quickly become one of the team’s best weapons.
By 1995, Thome became a nearly everyday player, playing in 137 games. However, it was that postseason that Thome truly established himself as a star, hitting a two-run homer in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series to help the Indians take a 3-2 lead before eventually winning the series and going to the team’s first World Series in 41 years. In Game 1 of the World Series that season, Thome would hit a solo shot to help the team to a 3-2 victory. Though Cleveland would eventually lose to the Atlanta Braves, Thome showed that he had arrived.
Over the next seven seasons, Thome became one of the best players Cleveland had ever seen. From 1996-2002, Thome recorded seven straight seasons with at least 30 home runs and 100 RBIs. In 2001, Thome became Cleveland’s all-time home run leader with 243 and the next season he would be the second Indian to ever hit more than 50 home runs in a season, setting the franchise record with 52.
During the offseason, Thome signed a six-year, $82 million contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, ending his time with Cleveland hitting .287 with 334 homers and 927 RBIs, earning three All-Star Game appearances and a Silver Slugger Award over 12 years. In the City of Brotherly Love, Thome continued his power–hitting ways.
In his first season with the Phillies, Thome led the league with a whopping 47 home runs while also driving in 131 runs. The next season, Thome hit 42 home runs with 105 RBIs while earning another All-Star nod. In 2005, injuries limited Thome to just 59 games and the emergence of young star Ryan Howard made the slugger expendable.
He was traded to the reigning World Series champion Chicago White Sox in the offseason, bringing the first baseman close to home. In the Windy City, Thome did what he always did – hit home runs. In his first season of 2006, Thome was named an All-Star after hitting 42 home runs with 109 RBIs. While he wouldn’t be able to replicate those numbers over his final three seasons with the team, Thome finished his tenure in Chicago playing four seasons with a .265 average, 369 RBIs, 134 home runs.
During the 2009 season, Thome was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers where he played the remainder of the season. In 2010, Thome signed with the Minnesota Twins where he’d play a season and a half. In this tenure, Thome would become the eighth player in MLB history to hit 600 home runs when he hit No. 599 and No. 600 in the same game, the first player to ever do that.
In the twilight of his career, Thome would make short returns to both Cleveland and Philadelphia before finishing his final year with the Baltimore Orioles in 2012.
Retirement and Hall of Fame
Thome wouldn’t play again after the 2012 season and officially retired in 2014 at age 43 after playing 22 years. When he retired, Thome totaled 1,583 runs scored, 612 home runs and 1,699 RBIs. He is one of only seven other players in league history – Barry Bonds, Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Manny Ramirez, Mickey Mantle, Frank Thomas and Jimmie Foxx – to have at least 500 home runs, a .400 on-base percentage and a .550 slugging average.
He was named to five All-Star Games and finished in the Top 10 of his league’s Most Valuable Player balloting four times. His 612 home runs rank eighth on the MLB’s all-time list, and his 1,747 walks rank seventh. He is one of six players who have totaled at least 1,700 walks and 1,699 RBIs. He also holds the record for most walk-off home runs with 13 in his career.
After signing a one-day contract with Cleveland to retire as a member of the team, the franchise recognized Thome with a statue outside of the team’s stadium.
Thome was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame as a member of the 2018 class which included fellow legends Vladimir Guerrero, Trevor Hoffman, Chipper Jones, Jack Morris and Alan Trammell.
That same year, Thome returned to one of his former teams, the White Sox, as a Special Assistant to the Senior Vice President/General Manager where he still works today. That’s not the only way Thome stays in the sport however as in February the Hall of Famer was named the new president of the MLB Players Alumni Association.
We are thrilled to announce Jim Thome as our new president! Jim will assume the duties of president immediately under the guidance of former president Brooks Robinson. pic.twitter.com/LdBEQNDXKb
— MLBPAA (@MLBPAA) February 23, 2022
Given his lifelong love for the game, there seems to be no better person to lead the MLBPAA than Thome. With his deep connections to so many franchises and positive demeanor throughout his illustrious career, Thome should see nothing but continued success in his new role centered around the sport he holds dear.
