Four former members of the Atlanta Braves' organization were inducted into the Hall of Fame last weekend. However, there were also two representatives of the White Sox franchise who were enshrined in Cooperstown: Tony La Russa and Frank Thomas. Considering La Russa was more famous on his A's and Cardinals teams, today I want to talk about the Big Hurt.
Frank Edward Thomas played at either first base or as the DH from 1990-2008 with the ChiSox, A's, and Toronto Blue Jays. Known as the Big Hurt because of his menacing home run power and his huge size, Thomas was one of the key factors in helping the team get to the 2005 World Series (although he did not play in the actual World Series vs. Houston due to an injury). The five-time All Star smacked 521 career home runs, tied for 18th on the all time list, along with 1,704 runs batted in, putting him at the number 22 on that all time list. Thomas won the AL MVP in back-to-back years in 1993 and 1994. In the strike-shortened '94 season, he hit .353 with 38 dingers and 101 RBIs. Those are numbers that some players couldn't best even if they played in a standard 162-game season! Oh, did I mention that Thomas also hit for a lifetime batting average of .301?
Although he is retired, Frank Thomas will always be remembered because of his prolific slugging and his recent enshrinement into the Hall of Fame. Anyway, thanks for reading this post. I hope you enjoyed it and check back soon for more of "all the buzz on what wuzz."
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