Jim Thome
Jim Thome
James Howard "Jim" Thomeis a retired American baseball player who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1991 to 2012. He played for six different teams, most notably the Cleveland Indians during the 1990s and the Philadelphia Phillies in the early 2000s. A prolific power hitter, Thome hit 612 home runs during his career—the seventh-most all time—along with 2,328 hits, 1,699 runs batted in, and a .276 batting average. He was a member of five All-Star teams and won...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionAthlete
Date of Birth27 August 1970
CountryUnited States of America
Every player that plays for any organization, having great fans on your side every night is a great thing.
My family has loved Minnesota and that was one of the big reasons we decided to come back. For me, family decisions were a big part to coming back to the Twins.
You can't play forever.
We all make mistakes and sometimes you say things and you really don't realize what you're saying at that moment.
When do you know it's time to say, 'OK, that's it?' That is the most difficult part of any decision like that because you don't want to throw the 'R' word out there. I've mentioned it a couple times, but not in the sense that I'm doing it. That word is very fragile. We'll see.
This is a tremendous honor (winning the 2002 Roberto Clemente Award), to be considered in the same class as Roberto Clemente. He is a hero and role model for all of us who play the game and strive to be as good a player and person as he was.
I really do try hard to be a good teammate. I can't run very fast, but I try to always run hard. I may strike out a lot, but I try to walk to set up the guys who are hitting after me.
There's an inner feeling you get when you get in a situation to do well in a game. It's hard to explain.
My dad told me when I went into high school, 'It's not what you do when you walk in the door that matters. It's what you do when you walk out.' That's when you've made a lasting impression.
Not playing every day, I kind of healed up a little bit from the little injuries that I had the year before. Then, when I got home this winter and my body wasn't beat up, I said, 'Wait a minute, this may work out.'
The passion is my favorite part of the city [Philadelphia]. You go from 'we love you' to 'we hate you' back to 'you walk on water.' You're driving, and somebody might wave or somebody might flip you off.
If I had to give advice about parents, it would be this: Value your relationships with them. Those relationships are what you stand for. Not only are we blessed to wear a uniform that says PHILLIES on the front, but we have our names on the back. That name means you're playing for your family.
The strongest thing I put into my body is steak and eggs. I just eat. I'm not a supplement guy. Steroids are not even a thought.
Is my ability what it was at, say, 25 or 30 years old? Probably not, but I like to compete. I like to go out and play the game hard.