Answering the Call of Duty: Jim Thome

For the first time since 2007, Jim Thome played first base on Monday's Minor League Spring Training Game. Thome played 4-innings at first for the first time since 2007 where he played a total of 8 innings at first for the Chicago White Sox. After the game he was questioned, "Just like riding a bike, right?" To which Thome replied, "Oh no. No, no." Many don't realize that Jim Thome is 41 years old, he's been in the Majors since 1991, which as of this season is 21 seasons ago. Plagued by back problems, old age (by baseball standards), and overall rust, Thome will have some trouble playing at first. In the Spring Training game, a ball went right by him, to which he replied, "The ball always finds you when you haven't been out there in a while." With Ryan Howard gone, who will play first? Or who will fill the void of RBIs and homeruns? Ty Wigginton, Laynce Nix, John Mayberry, Domonic Brown, and Jim Thome all can't play at once to fill the void. So what is Charlie Manuel to do while Howard out on injury? He hopes to have Thome there to play at first and is banking on around 200 at-bats. Unfortunately if Thome only pinch-hits and plays as the DH in Interleague Play, that means that he will still only have around 115 at-bats. (Most at bats of a pinch-hitter was Lenny Harris who had 83 in 2001 with the Mets). But Phillies fans aren't going to forget what Jim Thome has done for the city, hitting 47 homeruns in 2003 in the last season of Veterans Stadium. Thome is in the top 6 of homerun hitters in the past 10 years that isn't linked to steroids. He hit his 600th with the Indians in the 2011 season (finished with 604) and he hopes to have many more with the Phillies in 2012. There are some things that Thome has to re-learn at first, and he's hoping to get his mitt back into shape. I wish Thome luck in the 2012 season, and hope that he can play first at the best of his abilities.