Jim Thome

About Jim Thome

James Howard "Jim" Thome (pronounced /ˈtʰoʊˌmeɪ/, born August 27, 1970 in Peoria, Illinois) is a Major League Baseball designated hitter for the Chicago White Sox.

Thome originally played for the Cleveland Indians, joining the team for the first time in 1991 as a third baseman. In 1997, when the Indians traded for Matt Williams, Thome shifted over to first base.

At the plate, Thome began to come into his own by 1995, when he hit 25 home runs and 73 runs batted in with a .314 batting average. Thome then hit 38 home runs in 1996 and 40 in 1997. Thome soon became a prolific home run hitter, once hitting a 511-foot (156-meter) shot at Jacobs Field, the longest home run ever recorded at a Cleveland ballpark. He hit 49 home runs with the Indians in 2001, followed by a career-high 52 homers in 2002.