Video: http://www.csnchicago.com/06/25/10/Big-Hurt-TV-AJ-Pierzysnki-on-hot-streak/landing.html?blockID=261039&feedID=621 (5:28)
June 25, 2010
May 26, 2010
Fangraphs can haz WAR comparison
Appelman:
The other new feature are the WAR graphs where you can compare up to 4 players at a time in various ways:
May 14, 2010
The Big Hurt is in the TV booth tonight!
Frank Thomas is replacing Steve Stone for the 3-game series at Kansas City.
UPDATE: We could have used him as DH.
May 8, 2010
Frank Thomas to replace Steve Stone
Frank Thomas will be in the booth with Hawk Harrelson in KC on May 14-16, as Steve Stone takes a planned weekend off
April 6, 2010
Let the healing begin
Driving to the ballpark on Monday, I was a little nervous about having Frank Thomas and Kenny Williams sit side-by-side one another on our pregame show. In 2006, they both had an explosive falling out that fractured their relationship to the point where I thought they would never speak again.
But in a matter of hours, the two were going to be about an inch away from each other, live on television, and I was either going to be the host of this reunion or the referee.
What did I get myself into? …
the video from the thomas-williams interview is 3 minutes long
April 4, 2010
Frank Thomas will be covering White Sox home games for CSN
He is the White Sox all-time leader in home runs, RBIs, doubles, runs, walks, slugging percentage, on-base percentage, extra base hits, total bases, on and on and on…
He is Big.
He can Hurt.
He’ll be Frank.
His last name is Thomas.And this season, the greatest hitter in the 110-year history of the White Sox will be
joining Comcast SportsNet for all Sox home games in 2010.Am I excited? That would be a Hawk Harrelson “Yes!!!!”
It should make for some fun and intriguing television, not to mention add a whole bunch of homers to the Pre and Post-Game Live set. Frank Thomas (521), Bill Melton (160), Chuck Garfien (0). …
Frank Thomas will work between 65-70 White Sox home games as part of the Comcast SportsNet pregame and postgame coverage team. The part-time move to Chicago also presents Thomas the chance to see his son, Sterling, play baseball in his senior year of high school. …
April 3, 2010
‘What It Means To Be A White Sox’: Sunday 7pm CT on WGN
On Sunday, April 4 at 7pm central, WGN-TV and WGN America will premiere “What It Means To Be A White Sox” and “What It Means To Be A Cub”, two one-hour specials celebrating the magic of Chicago baseball.
“What It Means To Be A White Sox” contains interviews with over 40 White Sox heroes and managers, including Jerry Reinsdorf, Ozzie Guillen, Kenny Williams, Billy Pierce, Paul Konerko, Minnie Minoso, Mark Buehrle, Bill Melton, Gary Peters, and Bobby Jenks. The show focuses on the men who made White Sox baseball so great over the past fifty years and you will hear them tell their fondest memories of playing on the South Side. …
Here’s the WGN press release:
The “What it Means” specials are a unique celebration of Chicago baseball with first-person accounts of why each team is so special. Over 40 interviews from each team will allow baseball fans to gain insight from past players, coaches, owners, and long-time team employees. Interviews include Lou Piniella, Ozzie Guillen, Ernie Banks, Luis Aparicio, Ryne Sandberg, Frank Thomas, Carlos Zambrano, Mark Buehrle and all your favorite legends from both the North and South Sides. The shows will kick off the 2010 baseball season in HD. …
March 30, 2010
Hawk Harrelson Night, Frank Thomas Day, and [Nancy] Faust Fest
White Sox 2010 Promotional Schedule:
White Sox franchise legends also will be honored on several dates this season. Hawk Harrelson Night, presented by Comcast SportsNet, will be held on June 8; Frank Thomas Day, which will feature a special limited-edition “Big Hurt” bobblehead, on August 29; and Faust Fest, in honor of famed White Sox organist Nancy Faust, on September 18 that will feature a Faust bobble-hands doll giveaway. …
February 23, 2010
Frank Thomas Quick Reference
Scott Reifert compiled a list of links to articles covering Frank Thomas’ retirement. Here’s a couple more:
KenWo @ SSS: Quite Frankly, He Was The Greatest
Joe Posnanski: Frank Thomas
This is a must-read by Rick Reilly written for SI on August 9, 1994: The Big Heart
And you can check my blog’s Frank Thomas page (12 posts in 2010).
February 22, 2010
The Big Hurt
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. …
February 13, 2010
Walt Hriniak on Frank Thomas
Employing Hriniak’s unique front-foot hitting style that included finishing swings with one hand on the bat, Thomas finished an 18-year career with 521 home runs, 1,701 RBIs, a .301 career batting average and a .419 on-base percentage. He was a contact hitter trapped inside a slugger’s body with one of his generation’s most discerning eyes at the plate (1,667 walks).
“This isn’t any BS,” said Hriniak, Thomas’ personal hitting guru who was the Sox hitting coach from 1989-95. “People ask me who was the greatest hitter I ever saw and I said if you needed a base hit, Wade Boggs, but as far as the best all-around hitter, it was Frank Thomas, hands down. He could win a game with a single down the right-field line or home run to left.”
Hriniak just laughed when asked if he ever tried to talk Thomas out of his unusual ritual of swinging a 3-foot, 5-pound piece of rebar — a steel rod that reinforces concrete — in the on-deck circle. He knew better.
“Never,” Hriniak said. …
February 12, 2010
Jermaine Dye prepared to retire
On the day that Frank Thomas announced his retirement from baseball, he almost overshadowed himself by disclosing the stunning news of another former White Sox player who might retire right behind him.
Jermaine Dye.
Thomas spent time with Dye last week in Las Vegas, and during our interview following his retirement press conference, Thomas revealed to Comcast SportsNet that Dye is “pretty sad” about still being unsigned, and said Jermaine is prepared to retire if the right opportunity doesn’t present itself. …
There’s a video (8:09) of Frank’s interview in the same link.
Frank Thomas’ favorite teammate?
“I had over 850 different teammates,” Thomas said. “I guess my favorite teammate of all time was Tim Raines. He really pulled me under his wing and we’re still great friends today.”
Full Frank Thomas’ press conference (video)
http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/media/video.jsp?content_id=7168151 (19:16)
more Frank Thomas videos here, like this 2:43 retrospective
Frank & family from today
