Outfielder, New
York Mets
Age: 33 (June 11)
1st season
with Mets
Bats – Right,
Throws – Right
Height: 6’3” Weight: 200
Prior to 1962:
The son of
Lithuanian immigrants (the original family name was Tumas), Thomas was a native
of Pittsburgh and originally studied to become a Roman Catholic priest before
turning his attention to pursuing a baseball career. Signed by his hometown
Pirates in 1947, the aspiring outfielder was assigned to Tallahassee of the
Class D Georgia-Florida League the following year and batted .295 with 39
doubles, 8 triples, 14 home runs, 132 RBIs, a .340 on-base -percentage, and a
.458 slugging percentage. He was a league All-Star and advanced to two Class B
teams in 1949 and hit a combined .319 with 24 doubles, 14 home runs, 87 RBIs, a
.370 OBP, and a .499 slugging percentage. Assigned to the New Orleans Pelicans
of the Class AA Southern Association in 1951, Thomas was again a league
All-Star as he batted .289 with 23 home runs, 85 RBIs, a .342 OBP, and a .514
slugging percentage. Called up to the Pirates in August, he appeared in 39
games and hit .264 with 9 doubles, 2 home runs, and 16 RBIs. Back with New
Orleans in 1952, he batted .303 with 40 doubles, 6 triples, 35 home runs, 131
RBIs, a .372 OBP, and a .566 slugging percentage. He received another
late-season call-up to Pittsburgh which set the stage for him to stick with the
club in 1953, which had a significant need for better hitting, and his ability
to hit long line drives to left field with his great strength seemed to be made
to order. Playing primarily in center field in ’53, Thomas hit .255 with 30
home runs, 102 RBIs, a .331 OBP, and a .505 slugging percentage. He wrangled
with general manager Branch Rickey for a significant raise for 1954, setting
the stage for regular battles over salary with the Pirates. He accepted a
contract for $12,500 and batted .298 with 32 doubles, 7 triples, 23 home runs,
94 RBIs, a .359 OBP, and a .497 slugging percentage. Along the way he was an
All-Star for the first time and tied for thirteenth in league All-Star voting. Thomas
held out in 1955, signed for $18,000, and went on to produce a lesser season as
he hit .245 with 25 home runs, 72 RBIs, a .324 OBP, and a .431 slugging
percentage. Shifted to third base in 1956, he struggled at the new position but
batted .282 with 25 home runs, 80 RBIs, a .326 OBP, and a .461 slugging
percentage. In 1957 Thomas split time at first and third base as well as the
outfield, but while not a defensive whiz with his lack of speed and despite a
strong throwing arm, his bat remained productive as he hit .290 with 30
doubles, 23 home runs, 89 RBIs, a .335 OBP, and a .460 slugging percentage. Receiving
a raise to $25,000 in 1958, he batted .281 with 35 home runs, 109 RBIs, a .334
OBP, and a .528 slugging percentage. He started the All-Star Game at third base
for the NL, his position for most of the season. Recognized particularly for
his hitting, he was part of a surge to second place by the perennially losing
Pirates and he placed fourth in league MVP voting. He hit particularly well on
trips to the league’s new cities in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Much coveted
by other teams in trade talks, he was dealt to the Cincinnati Reds in the
offseason as part of a six-player trade in which Pittsburgh obtained third
baseman Don Hoak. Dealing with a significant hand injury in 1959, Thomas was
limited to 108 games and his batting production dropped to .225 with 12 home
runs, 47 RBIs, a .278 OBP, and a mere .380 slugging percentage. He was traded
again in the offseason, this time to the Chicago Cubs where he appeared at
first and third base in addition to the outfield in 1960. He batted .238 with
21 home runs, 64 RBIs, a .280 OBP, and a .399 slugging percentage. Thomas
started the 1961 season with the Cubs but was traded to the Milwaukee Braves in
May. He hit well for his new club and produced a .284 average for Milwaukee
with 25 home runs, 67 RBIs, a .335 OBP, and a .506 slugging percentage while
starting in left field. In the offseason he was dealt once again, this time to
the expansion Mets.
1962 Season Summary
Appeared in 156
games
LF – 126, 1B – 11,
PH – 11, 3B – 10
[Bracketed
numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]
Batting
Plate
Appearances – 633
At Bats – 571
Runs – 69
Hits – 152
Doubles – 23
Triples – 3
Home Runs – 34
[6]
RBI – 94 [13]
Bases on Balls
– 48
Int. BB – 4
Strikeouts – 95
[10]
Stolen Bases – 2
Caught Stealing
– 1
Average - .266
OBP - .329
Slugging Pct. -
.496 [13, tied with Eddie Mathews]
Total Bases – 283
[14]
GDP – 15 [16,
tied with Ken Boyer, Bill Mazeroski & Jose Pagan]
Hit by Pitches
– 8 [5, tied with Chuck Hiller & Bob Aspromonte]
Sac Hits – 0
Sac Flies – 6
[10, tied with nine others]
Midseason snapshot: 2B – 13, HR - 15, RBI - 50, AVG - .297, OBP - .357, SLG – .508
---
Most hits, game
– 3 on nine occasions
Longest hitting
streak – 18 games
HR at home – 18
HR on road – 16
Most home runs,
game – 2 on five occasions
Multi-HR games
– 5
Most RBIs, game
– 6 vs. Philadelphia 8/1
Pinch-hitting – 4 for 11 (.364) with 2 RBI
Fielding (OF)
Chances – 239
Put Outs – 216
Assists – 14
Errors – 9
DP – 0
Pct. - .962
---
In their inaugural season, the Mets went 40-120 to finish tenth in the NL, 60.5 games behind the pennant-winning San Francisco Giants, while leading the league in most walks drawn (616), fewest hits (1318), and lowest batting average (.240). The “Amazing Mets”, guided by veteran manager Casey Stengel (who turned 72 during the season) and with a roster filled by veteran castoffs and young prospects, rose as high as ninth in the newly expanded league thanks to a 9-3 May spurt, but settled into the cellar on the way to setting a record-for futility, often in amazingly inept fashion. The popular and highly publicized underdogs drew 922,530 fans to the Polo Grounds, their temporary home while awaiting construction of a new ballpark in Queens.
Aftermath of 1962:
In 1963, Thomas saw less playing time due to an injured shoulder and the team’s desire to give their younger players more action. He batted .260 with 15 home runs, 60 RBIs, a .317 OBP, and a .393 slugging percentage. He fit less into the Mets’ plans in 1964 and was dealt to the Philadelphia Phillies in August, who were in first place and in need of a first baseman. Thomas filled the need until a broken thumb suffered in a September game knocked him out of the lineup. He hit .294 in 39 games with the Phillies, with 7 home runs, 26 RBIs, a .311 OBP, and a .517 slugging percentage. The Phillies had expanded their lead with Thomas at first base but would end up suffering an epic collapse in the season’s final weeks to lose out in the end. The arrival of Dick Stuart by offseason trade put Thomas in a backup role with the Phillies in 1965. His time in Philadelphia came to an end due to a nasty fight with teammate Dick Allen during batting practice prior to a game against the Reds. Thomas had a penchant for making provocative comments and relentlessly needling other players and was nicknamed “the Big Donkey” as a result. Remarks made to Allen went too far and it took the effort of several teammates to pull them apart. The result of the altercation was that Thomas was dealt to the Houston Astros, who in turn sent him back to the Braves in September. His career ended with the Cubs in 1966. For his major league career, he batted .266 with 1671 hits that included 262 doubles, 31 triples, and 286 home runs. Thomas scored 792 runs and compiled 962 RBIs, a .320 OBP, and a .454 slugging percentage. With the Mets he batted .262 with 311 hits, 122 runs scored, 38 doubles, 5 triples, 52 home runs, 173 RBIs, a .319 OBP, and a .434 slugging percentage. A three-time All-Star, he never appeared in the postseason. Thomas came to be most notably remembered for the altercation with Allen despite his accomplishments on the field. His 1962 home run total with the Mets remained the franchise’s single-season record until 1975. He died in 2023 at age 93.
---
Highlighted Years feature players who led a major league
in one of the following categories: batting average, home runs (with a minimum
of 10), runs batted in, or stolen bases (with a minimum of 20); or pitchers who
led a major league in wins, strikeouts, earned run average, or saves (with a
minimum of 10). Also included are participants in annual All-Star Games between
the National and American Leagues since 1933. This category also includes Misc.
players who received award votes, were contributors to teams that reached the
postseason, or had notable seasons in non-award years.
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