One of the most revered figures in Major League Baseball and a true fan favorite of the White Sox, Jim Thome will be inducted into the Hall of Fame on Sunday. The left-handed slugger played for many teams, but the White Sox Hold a special place in his heart.
Jim Thome gets emotional discussing his White Sox career pic.twitter.com/j47qVpAgdz
— White Sox Talk (@NBCSWhiteSox) July 29, 2018
As a native of Peoria, IL, Thome holds Chicago-land at heart. Chuck Garfien asked Thome to reflect on what playing for the White Sox meant to him in the context of his career.
“Coming home after mom’s death; being traded…from the Phillies; and the joy and the happiness that I think baseball does give families. We went through a very emotional time with losing Mom, and having that opportunity to come home, and I think what baseball did was really eased the pain of her death.”
Thome’s mother died in Jan. 2005 and as the season closed for the Phillies, a deal was struck to jettison the slugger to the White Sox in November and sent Aaron Rowand and eventually, Gio Gonzalez to the Phillies. During the Hall-of-Fame weekend tour, Thome was wistful on his baseball career and modest, working-class roots.
“I know there’s been moments here over the last couple days; we talked about Mom. We talked about Lila. I broke down. But I don’t know how it’s going to feel tomorrow, I don’t. But I want to truly…man, just embrace it. I’m sure there’s going to be emotions, but this is truly what it’s all about. Is to get this opportunity to go on stage and let everyone know how much you appreciate what they’ve meant.”
His 15-year-old daughter, Lila will sing the National Anthem on Sunday before Thome, Chipper Jones, Trevor Hoffman and Vladimir Guerrero get to enter the hallowed halls. Alan Trammel and Jack Morris will also be inducted into the Hall of Fame under the modern era ballot.
One more thing about Thome. As a minor-leaguer at my first Spring Training in 2007, I witnessed Thome’s work ethic and dedication to his craft first hand.
There was one day when Jerry Hairston and I were walking off the back fields and Hairston grabbed me to pause and watch Thome play in a B-game in the minor league complex. Thome spent two innings loosening his back with the help of the training staff to prepare for one at-bat. Before he went up to the plate he walked over to the fence and chatted with Hairston and me.
We talked about what he might see from Brandon Webb who was pitching for the Dback that day and how to approach his at-bat. He was twice as wide as he was tall and an impressively gentle yet competitive guy. Thome jumped on the first pitch he saw smacked a long, high drive to center field that didn’t have the juice to get over the fence.
There were other times at camp where he spent extra time with younger guys to chat and just be a regular guy. This speaks to his kindness and depth of character that is sometimes hard to find on professional sports. But there’s no question that today Thome will be a puddle of emotions when he takes the podium to thank his team.
