Jim Thome

James Howard Thome (born August 27, 1970 in Peoria, Illinois) is a Major League baseball player who currently plays for the Philadelphia Phillies.

MLB career

Thome originally played for the Cleveland Indians, joining the team for the first time in 1991 as a third baseman. In 1997, when the Indians traded for Matt Williams, Thome shifted over to first base. At the plate, Thome began to come into his own by 1995, when he hit 25 home runs and 73 runs batted in with a .314 batting average. Thome then hit 38 home runs in 1996 and 40 in 1997.

Related Topics:
Cleveland Indians - 1991 - 1997 - Matt Williams - 1995 - Home run - Runs batted in - Batting average - 1996

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Thome became a prolific home run hitter, once hitting a 511-foot shot at Jacobs Field, the longest home run ever recorded at a Cleveland ballpark. By 2001, Thome hit 49 home runs with the Indians and then a career-high 52 homers in 2002.

Related Topics:
Jacobs Field - 2001 - 2002

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For the 2003 season, Jim Thome accepted a six-year offer from the Philadelphia Phillies. Many thought that he would struggle in the National League, facing an entirely new set of pitchers, but Thome proved the critics wrong, hitting 47 home runs in his first season with the Phillies to finish one behind Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt's single-season team record of 48 in 1980 (and ahead of Schmidt's 45 in 1979).

Related Topics:
2003 - National League - Hall of Famer - Mike Schmidt - 1980 - 1979

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In 2004, Thome hit his 400th career home run before a home crowd at the brand new Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, surpassing Al Kaline for 37th on the all-time home run list. He ended the 2004 season with 42 homers, giving him 423 for his career, which placed him 35th on the career list.

Related Topics:
2004 - Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia - Al Kaline

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Off the field, Jim is putting all 10 of his nieces and nephews through college. It was reported on ESPN's SportsCenter that shortly after his nephew, Brandon, was paralyzed in a tragic accident, he asked Jim to hit a home run for him; not only did Thome fulfill the request but he hit two homers in the game.

Related Topics:
ESPN - SportsCenter

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Injuries caught up with Thome during the first half of the 2005 season, where he hit only .207 with 7 homers and 30 RBIs going into the All-Star break. He opted for season-ending surgery in July, and is rehabbing for Spring training of the 2006 season. Ryan Howard has filled in admirably for him at first base in the 2005 season, leading all National League rookies in home runs.

Related Topics:
Spring training - 2006 - Ryan Howard

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