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3 time All-Star Frank Thomas He passed away, according to a statement from the Mets and Pirates. Thomas is not to be confused with the White Hall of Fame designated hitter he played 16 of his seasons with his Sox. Between 1951 and his 66th year he played for seven teams.
A native of Pittsburgh, Thomas graduated from high school in 1947 and signed with the hometown Pirates. He spent more than three years in the minors before making his MLB debut at the end of the 1951 campaign. Thomas saw sporadic playing time in his first two years until going into overtime for the first time during his 24-year-old season in 1953.
Listed at 6’3 inches and 200 pounds, the right-handed hitting outfielder quickly cemented himself as a good power hitter. He hit his 30th home run on the .255/.331/.505 line during his first full season, and as a result earned his MVP vote in the downvote. He remained a staple in MVP voting during his run in Pittsburgh. Thomas secured at least some support in five of his six seasons from 1953 to 1958 and was nominated for an All-Star in ’54, ’55 and ’58. He was second in his 1958 poll, where he reached fourth place. Ernie Banks, Willie Mays When Henry Aaron.
Thomas hit 20 long balls each year from 1953-58. During that time, his 161 home runs ranked him 10th in the majors, and more than that in a group of 9 players he was inducted into the 7 Hall of Fame. 480 line in just under 3700 plate appearances with the Bucks at the time. He has twice been in the National League’s Top 10 in slugging percentage and RBI, including his second-place finish with 109 RBIs in 1958.
During the 1958-59 offseason, Pittsburgh traded Thomas to the Reds as part of a seven-player deal that got a catcher. Smokey Burgess and starter Harvey Haddix in Steel City. In Cincinnati he played for a year but struggled.Reds dealt him to Cubs to get his 3-player package with relief pitchers Bill Henry next offseason. Thomas spent his little over a year in Chicago, but continued to get into brawls and in May 1961, the Cubs turned him over to the Braves. He righted the ship with his 25 home runs in his 124 games with the Milwaukee-based franchise at the time.
The following winter, the Braves traded Thomas to the Mets. He joined the expansion club in his first campaign of 1962 and hit his team-leading 34 home runs that season. Thomas spent about two and a half years with Queens before being traded to the Phillies. He played in Philadelphia, Houston, and played his second stint as the Brave and His Cubs, ending his playing career in 1966.
Overall, Thomas has appeared in parts of 16 major league campaigns. 266/.320/.454 in his 1766 games. He hit 286 home runs, placing him 177th on the all-time leaderboard. He scored 262 times, 962 runs and 792 points. His most productive season was with his hometown Pirates, but he played multiple seasons for five different clubs.
MLBTR extends its condolences to Thomas’ family, friends, former teammates and loved ones.
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