British Fan with a question

[Hatchetman]

frank thomas is a fascinating study. a huge man, yet shy and extremely sensitive. he's honest and he's not a bs artist which has gotten him into trouble with the media and has really tarnished his national reputation. he's got a lot of pride and is very concerned about his own performance, which rubs team mates the wrong way. from what i can gather, he is at heart a kind man. as far as i know, no one really seems to know what makes him tick. he went through a nasty divorce and a music production company he started turned into a financial disaster.

 

performance wise, he was the greatest non-steroid assisted hitter in the last 30 years. he's been injured off and on for the past 8 years or so, with pretty serious injuries. also during that time, he became obsessed with hitting home runs, to the detriment of his overall performance. he was trying to keep up with the drug laden bonds, mcgwire, sosa, etc.

 

when he came up to the majors (he spent about a year in the minors after being drafted in the first round out of Auburn University), he was a below average but passable defensive first baseman. i believe he had and probably still has some mental-block about throwing the baseball. he looked like a girl when he threw and had about the same success. of course, being intensely sensitive to criticism, it only made matters worse. after about 5 years he was moved to "designated hitter" which the american league has in place of letting the pitcher make an automatic out. it would have been interesting to see what would have happened to his career had there been no "dh." not playing a defensive position definitely hurts his reputation as it relates to baseball's all-time greatest players.

 

all in all he's a fascinating character and i've been lucky to follow his career since the day he was drafted.

[SleepyWhiteSox]

Welcome.

[DePloderer]

OT again: I wonder what's going to happen with Manchester United now that the resident gay guy Malcolm Glazer bought the controlling share of the club.

OT again; There is a rumour going around these parts that his kids are secret Leeds United fans and are intent on running the club down.oh blessed hope!

[Rooftop Shots]

[

 

 

Back on topic; am I right in thinking that the Cubs are the team that get up our noses most?

 

Well, let's just say that my saying that I have is, "If The Cubs were in the world series with Iraq, I'd be waving Sadaam Huseein flags!" Does that help answer your question?

As far as Big Frank goes, in his prime he was the most feared hitter in baseball. A few reasons why he was such a tough out. He had a tremendous eye for the strike zone at the plate so he knew what pitches not to swing at. He walked alot because of his good eye. If the ball came anywhere near the plate, he would murder it. (If you've never seen a guy that's 6 foot 7 weighs about 260, and hit a line drive with everything he's got, you're in for a real treat.) If he got fooled on a great pitch, he would reach out and his strength would muscle it for a squibber into the short part of the outfield. I agree with a fellow poster that when Frank came to bat, you stopped whatever you were doing to watch him.