A Salute to Jim Thome

Today marks the first of five installments of Letters to Pilky's first Recognition Week, where we here at LtP recognize those who, well, deserve recognition.

When I was little, the only thing I ever wanted to be was Jim Thome.

Mostly because of his striking good looks

Jim Thome was larger than life to young six year-old William when he led the Indians to the American League championship in 1997.  I always made sure that he was the "Star Player" in Hardball 5, and after my Albert Belle shirt wore out, his #25 was the second Indians jersey I ever had (and one of the best birthday presents of all time.  Too bad it doesn't fit anymore... I wouldn't mind another one... Good thing you can make custom jerseys on mlb.com... Take note, family).  He was (and is) a country-strong, home run hitting machine, and I'm confident that nobody has ever had more fun on a baseball field than he has.

Seriously, have you ever seen somebody this happy?

When my brother and I were little, we would always play tennis ball baseball in the sideyard.  It was always Indians vs Orioles, recreating the 1996 ALDS and the 1997 ALCS.  We would take the lineups out of Outside Pitch, give me a 3-0 lead in the series, and play out the rest of the series (I'm pretty sure my record was something like 1-97 in those things, which means I won 1 game and lost 387, but boy was that one victory glorious).  We would bat lefty for lefties and righty for righties, so in theory every player was the same, but I never felt more confident than when Big Jim Thome came up in the 7-hole. (Tangent:  The Indians were loaded in '97.  Bip Roberts, Omar Vizquel, Manny Ramirez, David Justice, Matt Williams, Sandy Alomar, Thome, Tony Fernandez, Marquis Grissom.  Rotation of Nagy, Hershiser, Ogea, Colon, and Wright.  Jose Mesa out of the pen.  How did we ever lose a game?).  I'm pretty sure that he batted close to .700 in those games (probably not really, but it felt like it).  Anyway, more than any other athlete ever has been (sorry Casey Blake), Jim Thome was my idol.

This was the best decision I have ever made.

Jim Thome used to just be a ballplayer to me, and there was nothing wrong with that.  Hundreds of guys are "just ballplayers" to the public.  They go onto the field, play the game, and go home, and we know nothing about them except for some stats, and maybe the memory of a Web Gem or walkoff homer they had.  

Paul Assenmacher - solid reliever, but pretty much just a ballplayer

As I've grown up, and my baseball appreciation has matured, I have come to realize that Jim Thome is more than just a ballplayer.  He is a role model.  In an age where many athletes worry about promoting their individual "brands" or trying to bring in as much money as possible, Thome is quietly becoming one of the best hitters of all time.  He is currently 8th all-time in home runs, only 20 behind Sammy Sosa, and 39th all-time in RBIs.  Disregarding players who have been linked to steroids (Sosa, A-Rod, and Bonds), Thome would be in 5th, in the company of Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, and Ken Griffey.  He is so humble, however, that many people forget about just how good he has been for such a long career.  His teams have a winning percentage of .540 for his career, which speaks to his skills as a player, but also speaks to his skills as a teammate and as a person.  He always has a smile on his face, he is always enjoying himself, and he always knows that his team will come out on top.  As anybody who has ever played organized sports knows, this type of attitude is contagious, and definitely will never hurt a team's ability to win.

Plus he has mad hops

In a game where failure is so prevalent, Thome is an eternal optimist.  He has 2395 career strikeouts, good for 2nd most all-time among hitters, and his lifetime batting average is .278.  He gets out a lot, but he always seems to not only think that he'll get a home run his next time up, but know that he'll hit one.  Last week, Sports Illustrated ran an article on Thome in which he was quoted as saying "Something special is always just about to happen. You've just got to believe it."  This is a man who is paying to put all ten of his nephews and nieces through college, whose nephew is paralyzed after suffering a spinal injury, and who lost his mother, one of his best friends, recently.  Circumstances don't phase Jim Thome.  Is there any better mindset than this?  It's applicable in everything.  It eliminates all potential excuses.  Whenever anything goes wrong, he always looks forward to the next opportunity.  Notice also how he uses the word "special" as opposed to "good" or something along those lines.  Imagine a life where you're always looking forward to that special occurrence.  No wonder he always looks so giddy.

A few weeks ago I wrote about how those who are hated have reached the top of their game.  I issued an addendum after my brother pointed out that those who truly transcend their field are too good to be hated.  He used the Beatles as an example, and I'd like to use Jim Thome.  Sure there are a few boo-birds in Cleveland when he comes back after leaving in 2001, but I find it hard to believe that anybody truly wants him to fail after all that he has done for the game.

If you don't see a resemblance, please stop reading

Looking at Jim Thome has always made me think a little bit of Babe Ruth.  The high socks, the baggy jersey, the chubby, clean-shaven face, the paunch of gut.  The Babe was larger than life, and to me, at least, so is Jim Thome.  So here's to you big man:  Thanks for never cheating.  Thanks for never giving up.  I hope that you finally find that World Series championship that you so rightly deserve.  That would really be something special.