There are only so many milestones in sports that portray outright dominance a player has over their game of choice. I imagine that most football fans would not be able to tell you if Brett Favre’s touchdown record is in the 400’s or 500’s (it’s 508), and many basketball fans would be hard-pressed to answer within 1,000 points of what Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s NBA points record (it’s 38,387). Because of this, reaching certain plateaus are not the same in other sports as they are in baseball.
Reaching 3,000 hits is one of the biggest landmarks a baseball player can reach, as evident by the attention given to Derek Jeter’s recent chase. It used to be all about hitting 500 home runs as well, but the steroid era took a bit away from the flash of that number. While 600 is not as round and perfect as 500, it has taken its place.
Jim Thome is about to become the eighth player in Major League Baseball history to hit 600 home runs. For some reason, this is going relatively unnoticed. It has been spoken about a bit on national broadcasts and sports shows, but the talk of 600 is not nearly comparable to the attention given to Jeter a few weeks ago. Of course, Thome is not one of the faces and names synonymous with baseball and Jeter is. Regardless, Thome’s accomplishment should be given more respect than it is currently being given.
For that matter, Thome should be given more respect. Seemingly underrated for his entire career, Thome has compiled numbers that stack up with some of the best offensive players in the history of the game. His absurd home run total stands behind his on base percentage of .404. As one of the best three true outcome (HR, BB, K) hitters ever, Thome has actually led the league in walks and strikeouts more times than he has led in home runs. A player like Thome exemplifies what it is to be a power hitter, plate discipline and a tremendous all-or-nothing swing.
Despite Thome’s high strikeout total (second most of all-time behind Reggie Jackson), he managed to hit over .300 three times and maintains a career batting average of .277. In his finest stretch of dominance, Thome batted .283/.410/.611 over his four seasons between ages 30-33. He averaged 48 home runs, 112 walks, and 162 strike outs over that period.
An additional small caveat noting that Thome has never been linked to steroids is unfortunately necessary in the current day-and-age. Three of the most recent inductees into the 600 home run club have had steroid links, Sammy Sosa, Alex Rodriguez, and Barry Bonds. The other four members are Ken Griffey Jr., Willie Mays, Babe Ruth, and Hank Aaron. Thome will become just the eighth member of the club, and the fifth with no steroid links. That is a pretty exclusive club with some of the most monumental names in all of sports.
Fans can do their part in this scenario and push for more coverage of Thome’s chase. Push to see Thome’s plate appearances as he nears the milestone, talk about it with friends, and make sure other baseball fans recognize how great Thome has been throughout his career. A future Hall-of-Famer reaching a tremendous landmark should be celebrated and has been celebrated recently, so let’s give Thome the respect he deserves by honoring his great career and great accomplishment. Congrats Jim Thome, and let’s make this 600th home run of the 450 foot for a point of emphasis.
