In case you were living underneath a rock from April to October, Frank Thomas resurrected his career in Oakland this past season. He’s really rewarding Oakland for the faith they had in him. Sources say that he’s nearing a two year deal with the Toronto Blue Jays.
Thomas says he greatly enjoyed Oakland’s laid back atmosphere in the clubhouse and the easy going management. So why in the hell is he going to Toronto? After all, they’re coached by a crazy bastard in John Gibbons. Gibbons is the same guy that fought Ted Lilly in the tunnel during a game. He also was the same guy who publicly challenged Shea Hillenbrand to a fight; the same guy who Hillenbrand called a “cancer, a coward, and a joke”. Frank Thomas doesn’t exactly have the smallest ego in Major League Baseball. He had lots of run-ins late in his tenure with the White Sox and appeared to find a new home in Oakland. How long will it be before Gibbons goes after him?
It was the A’s that installed Thomas as their everyday DH from the minute they signed him. They offered him a contract heavy with incentives and likely would have offered Thomas a nice deal to stay in Oakland for another season or two. I know Toronto gave him a nice deal (2 years, $18 million) but Thomas leaves a very good team to join the Blue Jays, a team that has failed to live up to expectations. He left an A’s team that reached the ALCS to join the Blue Jays, a team that seems destined to finish 3rd in the AL East for the rest of their existence. The move doesn’t make much sense but in the end, money is talking for Thomas.
Whatever happened to loyalty? Thomas had few takers this past offseason but Oakland was one of them. They threw him in their lineup, kept him happy, and he had a great year. He hit 39 homers and drove in 114, followed by a couple homers in the ALDS upset over Minnesota. And now, he’s gone. Thanks for nothing Oakland. Or should I say Fremont?
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The Blue Jays finished second last year to the Yankees.