Six state-of-the-art weeks don’t erase four disappointing seasons. This appears true even when those passing judgment include teammates and others in uniform.
Sad to say, that is the lesson behind the All-Star injustice handed Frank Thomas on Sunday.
While almost 100 of about 1,000 eligible players, coaches and managers didn’t bother to return ballots, those who did vote made the players union look wise for dealing them into the selection process. The players should be applauded for the job they did in naming 33 players to the All-Star team.
They didn’t get every one right but they hit the bull’s-eye with most selections.
For starters, they not only took notice of Anaheim setup man Brendan Donnelly but also excused him for being pressured into playing non-union exhibition games in that ugly spring of 1995.
They duly noted that Esteban Loaiza and Roy Halladay have been the American League’s top two pitchers and that Shawn Chacon was having one heck of a season in Colorado’s thin air. They gave Baltimore’s Melvin Mora, Milwaukee’s Richie Sexson and Texas’ Hank Blalock their due for putting together outstanding performances with dead-end clubs.
Too bad they blew it on Thomas.
Based on his 20 home runs and .422 on-base average, Thomas should be in uniform July 15 at U.S. Cellular Field. He still might make it–an on-line election for the 32nd spot and an injury to Kansas City’s Mike Sweeney create chances–but the fact is he deserved to finish behind only Seattle’s Edgar Martinez in the players’ voting among designated hitters.
Carl Everett, Thomas’ teammate for less than a week, was selected instead.
Never mind that Everett shouldn’t have been listed as a DH in the first place. He has played the outfield almost exclusively this season, getting only eight at-bats as a designated hitter. While Thomas has hit better when playing first, he still has played mostly DH.
But it’s surprising that Everett would get more support than Thomas.
Statistically, Thomas has Everett in every significant category except RBIs–home runs (20-18), doubles (22-14) and average (.283-.270). And Everett’s edge in RBIs (51-48) is because of two factors: he spent most of the season in a better lineup and Thomas has been more unselfish, taking 28 more walks.
Many believe OPS (on base plus slugging) is the best way to judge players. Thomas ranks third among American League qualifiers with an OPS of 1.002. Everett is 24th at .887.
Yet Everett somehow made a bigger impression with his torrid start than Thomas did with his surge, which began around Memorial Day. Players might give Everett a break because they understand he has been something of an institutional pariah throughout his career.
Or maybe they just don’t like Thomas. That’s the hard question Thomas must chew on.
Martinez, a slam-dunk choice, received 253 votes from his peers. Everett got 58 votes.
That’s all that was released, but the Tribune has learned that Oakland’s Erubiel Durazo, and not Thomas, was third in the player voting. And, according to a Major League Baseball source, Durazo (who is hitting .277, 9, 44) had fewer than 30 votes. So Thomas, a two-time MVP and likely Hall of Famer, had even fewer than that.
He deserved better. But most times you reap what you sew.
Like fans, players around the majors wonder what happened to the Thomas who lost his swagger after winning the batting title in 1997. He jumped back into the ranks of elite hitters in 2000 but then turned to Silly Putty in October, going hitless as Seattle swept the first-round playoff series.
His slide since 2000 can be traced largely to the ruptured triceps he suffered diving for a ball at first early in the ’01 season. That’s why Jerry Reinsdorf used some compassion in exercising that “diminished skills” clause in his contract after last season, reworking Thomas’ deal instead of giving him the maximum hit.
It doesn’t appear Thomas’ peers are as sympathetic as the White Sox chairman. That has to sting, whether he winds up getting a late invitation or not.
