Jump to content

Big Hurt still hurt


WinningUgly85

Recommended Posts

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?i...ce=MLBHeadlines

 

Thomas sidelined until doctors check ankle MRI

Associated Press

 

 

PHOENIX -- Frank Thomas arrived at Oakland Athletics spring training Thursday but it will still be a while before his new teammates get to see the Big Hurt in a game.

 

 

Thomas

Thomas won't be able to take part in workouts until the team's doctors check out an MRI exam of his surgically repaired left ankle, and he said he plans to spend most of the spring hitting in "B" games with minor-leaguers.

 

"They are going to take me real slow," he said. "I'll get my time in the back fields with the minor-league guys getting at-bats. That's great with me because I'll get a lot more work in instead of getting three or four at-bats in regular games. I'll spend more time on the back fields getting my eye going and timing.

 

"I'm going to take these at-bats seriously on the back field. As we get close to opening day, if they want to mix me in that's fine. I'll be ready to go," he said.

 

That appeared to surprise manager Ken Macha, who added that keeping Thomas healthy this spring is the primary goal.

 

"I would prefer that he play to see how he did," Macha said. "But if he comes up here I'm sure we'll be up here with him to see how he does. If playing in one of those games will jeopardize his health, then it's better that he not play."

 

Thomas' health was the big question when he was a free agent this offseason. After the Chicago White Sox declined to offer him salary arbitration in December, Thomas had to wait until late last month to find a new team.

 

He signed an incentive-laden deal with Oakland that guarantees him $500,000 and could be worth up to $3.1 million if his ankle stays healthy and he reaches certain level of plate appearances.

 

Thomas had only 345 at-bats his last two seasons with the White Sox, when he was dealing with ankle injuries. He missed the last three months in 2004 before undergoing offseason surgery.

 

He came back May 30 last season and played 34 games before being shut down for the season with another broken bone in his ankle, leaving him to watch the White Sox win their first World Series since 1917.

 

"I'm not prone [to injuries] at all," he said. "I had an unfortunate injury and I was surgically repaired. I chose to come back maybe a month too soon. Now it's feeling a lot better. The point I'm at now is a little better than it was when I returned last year."

 

Thomas did have some success in his brief time playing last season, hitting 12 homers in 105 at-bats for the White Sox. But he batted a career-low .219 and his on-base percentage of .315 was more than 100 points lower than his career mark of .427.

 

He attributes part of that to changes he made because he couldn't run the bases and said he expects to hit between .285 and .305 this season.

 

"I didn't want to get on base too much," he said. "I was in a lot of pain last year. I wanted to help the team the best way I could and that was hitting ball out of the ballpark."

 

Thomas, a two-time AL MVP who has 448 career home runs, turns 38 in May. He would like to play until he is 41 or 42 years old and thinks he still can be a productive player.

 

"I know I'm going to provide for the team I'm on," he said. "Bottom line, I've done it my whole career. If I'm healthy, you're going to have a special player on your team."

 

Thomas hasn't been cleared to run yet and hasn't even hit in a cage or off a tee since July. He said he puts a lot of stress on his left foot when hitting, which is why he has taken precautions to make sure the ankle has healed.

 

Thomas said it will take six weeks -- which will be into the first week of the season -- to get back to full speed with the bat after such a long break. But he doesn't envision any problems returning to his usual level.

 

"Hitting is something I've been doing since I was a kid," he said. "Give me a few days and I will feel pretty comfortable. I will be ready to go. I'm concerned about that."

 

Thomas still has lingering bitterness about the way his 16-year tenure in Chicago ended, saying the team should have called him to tell him he was being cut loose. He said he's getting past that now but wasn't ready to join his old teammates at the White House earlier this month to celebrate the World Series title.

 

"I was still a little uncomfortable going and being around everybody after everything that happened," he said. "I couldn't go there and act like everything was fine, because it wasn't fine in my eyes. The chapter had to close a little better than that."

 

White Sox general manager Kenny Williams said last month that the team tried its best to make sure Thomas' relationship ended in a "first-class manner."

Edited by WinningUgly85
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It sounds like Frank wants no part of reality. The guy doesn't think he's injury-prone yet 4 seasons 1999, 2001, 2004, and 2005 ended prematurely with injuries. He re-injured his ankle 8 or 9 months ago, hasn't been cleared to run, yet still talks like he will be ready opening day. It sounds like 2005 all over again. If I were a betting man, I would bet Frank is pretty much done.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Feb 23, 2006 -> 08:37 PM)
If I were a betting man, I would bet Frank is pretty much done.

There's no betting about it, he IS done.

 

He just won't admit it. Much like several Frank apologists around here.

 

Don't get me wrong, I love Frank as a player. One of the all-time greats (notice I didn't just say Sox greats). But realize that you can go out after winning a ring and as a member of the Sox rather than embarassing yourself by trying to prove you are healthy again.

 

The chances of Frank getting to 500 are slim and none.

 

And with every article I see that he is still not healthy, slim is about to walk out of the door.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE(aboz56 @ Feb 23, 2006 -> 05:41 PM)
There's no betting about it, he IS done.

 

He just won't admit it.  Much like several Frank apologists around here.

 

Don't get me wrong, I love Frank as a player.  One of the all-time greats (notice I didn't just say Sox greats).  But realize that you can go out after winning a ring and as a member of the Sox rather than embarassing yourself by trying to prove you are healthy again.

 

The chances of Frank getting to 500 are slim and none.

 

And with every article I see that he is still not healthy, slim is about to walk out of the door.

I don't think he's completely done in the sense that he absolutely can't play again. I think he's done in the sense that he won't be able to play and be confident in his health ever again. If you're Oakland, it's probably worth the money to take a shot and see if you can get 200+ at bats out of him, but it's risky to count on getting that many.

 

He still has a very outside shot at 500, but I don't think his body will hold up, and if he tries to push himself back into the game too early again....then it'll just make it harder for him once his foot fractures again.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Feb 23, 2006 -> 07:49 PM)
I don't think he's completely done in the sense that he absolutely can't play again.  I think he's done in the sense that he won't be able to play and be confident in his health ever again.  If you're Oakland, it's probably worth the money to take a shot and see if you can get 200+ at bats out of him, but it's risky to count on getting that many.

 

He still has a very outside shot at 500, but I don't think his body will hold up, and if he tries to push himself back into the game too early again....then it'll just make it harder for him once his foot fractures again.

He's actually better than White Sox doctors thought when he re-injured himself last season. They didn't think he would be able to play again. It appears he may, but it won't be for long, and probably won't be very pretty.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hmm, I don't think Frank is "done" by any means. I think that he just needs to realize that he isn't 27 anymore. And if he can't or won't, well I'm damn sure Billy Beane will make him realize it by platooning him at DH with Swisher or whoever.

 

I agree with you Balta, I think Frank should be limited to around 300 AB's in the regular season to make sure he's healthy for the post-season. The A's are stacked, and only injuries (IMO) will prevent them from making the postseason. With that in mind, they should save Frank for the postseason when the will need him the most.

 

I'm no Frank apoligist, but I think he has one or two more limited seasons in him. It's a shame his ego is as big as his frame though. He's not a bad clubhouse guy, but his attitude otherwise is complete s***.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Feb 23, 2006 -> 05:52 PM)
He's actually better than White Sox doctors thought when he re-injured himself last season. They didn't think he would be able to play again. It appears he may, but it won't be for long, and probably won't be very pretty.

Are you sure about that? I still think that the injury seems just as severe as it did last year...but it was going to heal at some point, and Frank is going to play on it whether he should or not.

 

The best description I got of the 2nd break was that it was very similar to the first break, but it was so close to the point where the first break and surgery happened that they couldn't operate on the 2nd spot. Even if the 2nd break wasn't as severe...the fact that he had 2 in the same spot, and the fact that they couldn't even operate on the 2nd, makes him a big risk.

 

The A's seriously should wait until Frank says he can run, then forbid him from running for another month, then let him try to get back into things.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The A's seriously should wait until Frank says he can run, then forbid him from running for another month, then let him try to get back into things.

 

Yea, if Frank comes back in August last year he's probably still healthy and still on the team. I'm not saying the Sox staff did a bad job rushing him back, but extreme caution is what Frank needs now. That and milk. Hell, with his weight, maybe some calcium fortified soy milk should be his milk beverage of choice--low cal and high in protein!

 

That a way to sell non-dairy milk in Frank Thomas post...

Edited by chitownsportsfan
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It hurts me that the Big Hurt is still hurting (sorry :P ).

 

It looks more and more like he should have retired with the Championship last year. There is nothing sadder than watching a great athlete be remembered for their poor ending performance rather than their many years of spectacular achievements.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE(aboz56 @ Feb 23, 2006 -> 07:41 PM)
There's no betting about it, he IS done.

 

He just won't admit it.  Much like several Frank apologists around here.

 

Don't get me wrong, I love Frank as a player.  One of the all-time greats (notice I didn't just say Sox greats).  But realize that you can go out after winning a ring and as a member of the Sox rather than embarassing yourself by trying to prove you are healthy again.

 

The chances of Frank getting to 500 are slim and none.

 

And with every article I see that he is still not healthy, slim is about to walk out of the door.

 

 

Slim has left the building....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE(greasywheels121 @ Feb 23, 2006 -> 09:53 PM)
I hope that's the case really.  I don't want to see him play elsewhere.

 

 

 

It's definitely got to suck for you...

 

We have some friends who's son absolutely positively loves Frank. He has every single baseball card, picture, autographs on any and everything you can imagine, and they have taken him to see Frank play in almost all the AL parks. It's crazy. He was so upset when the A's deal was announced.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

QUOTE(Steff @ Feb 23, 2006 -> 11:03 PM)
It's definitely got to suck for you...

 

We have some friends who's son absolutely positively loves Frank. He has every single baseball card, picture, autographs on any and everything you can imagine, and they have taken him to see Frank play in almost all the AL parks. It's crazy. He was so upset when the A's deal was announced.

 

I'm the same way, I have anything and everything Frank. I'm just glad it happened now after a World Series, and really at the end of his career. I got to know the Sox because of Frank, but for a while in the early part of his career, I was probably a Frank fan first and Sox fan second. It didn't matter to me when the Sox lost, if he hit a HR. That's been switched around for a good number of years now though.

 

However, like I said, I'm just glad it happened now. I think if this happened like 10 years ago, I'd probably be an A's fan right now. I really wish he did the Jerome Bettis/John Elway, and went out on top with the ring. It would've been so much sweeter.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dang that's too bad. I also was very sad to see him leave, when I was growing up I had 5 sports heroes (Bo Jackson, Frank Thomas, Derrick Thomas, John Stockton, and Karl Malone.) Obviously we know Jackson, Stockton, and Malone are retired and Derrick Thomas is dead, but Frank was the last remaining player on my favorite team.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...