The Big Hurt

Chris Jaffe:

What I think really hurts Thomas, though, was his physical presence itself. I think it hurt him two ways. First, I think the strain of carrying around that immense frame took its toll on his body, causing his performance to suffer. After turning 30, he only hit .270 for his career and topped 30 homers in a season exactly three times. Meanwhile, he suffered from chronic nagging injuries that sapped him of his ability to produce like he once had.

Second, he looked so damn imposing out there that it was hard to think something as small as a foot or ankle problem could slow him down. A tank shouldn’t stop rolling because of a few rocks in its treads. Yet that’s what happened, and Thomas’ critics unfairly nicknamed him “The Big Skirt” because he couldn’t keep going. …