Big Hurt Dumped

Huge news from Toronto. Just one day removed from being benched by the Blue Jays, they released the struggling slugger, because of 'lack of run production'.

Can we honestly say that the reason for his release was 'lack of run production'? Last time I checked, Frank Thomas has always been a slow starter. He started pretty much the same way last season, and the Jays didn't cut him. Yes a .167 AVG with 3 HR and 11 RBI might be slow, but last time I checked, the Jays were paying the Big Hurt to hit homeruns and drive in runners. April 20 today, he has hit three longballs and has drove in 11. At about that rate, he'd finish the season with around 20 HR and 65 RBI. Not close enough to his .298 with 30 home runs and 92 RBI of last season, which is what the Jays needed out of him. He started off last season with a .217 AVG, 8 HR and 22 RBI through his first 55 games he played in last season. Thomas has played about half of the 55 games, and is on pace for about the same place that he was at through the 55 games last season. I gave you the stats that he finished the season with, and they were allright. He won't return to his glory days with the White Sox, but he's an old man now, and is still playing pretty well.

Let's look back to 2006, when Thomas signed a pity deal for $500K with the Athletics. He started off the season with a .197 AVG with 9 HR and 22 RBI through 37 games. He finished off that season with 39 HR 114 RBI and a .270 AVG. Pretty good numbers in my books. Another fact: April is the only month in his Hall of Fame career that he has hit less than .300 in.

Now that we've crunched the numbers, was he really released because he wasn't producing? I don't think so. JP Riccardi is a somewhat smart man who would've figured out that he started slow in April and heated up in the second half of the season. There is probably one other reason for Thomas' sudden dismissal.

Frank signed a two year contract with the Jays prior to the 2007 season for $18.12M. That contract came with a vesting option worth $10M for 2009. That option would vest with 1000 plate appearences. Frank had 624 last season, and only needed 304 more this season, something likely to happen for the option to vest. It makes Riccardi look better to release him now while he's 300 away, then come July or August when he would be like 5 away. A 41 year old slugger (in 2009) making $10M who 'isn't producing' is a pretty hefty load to be carrying around. The fact that the Jays have guys like Adam Lind, Rod Barajas, Matt Stairs, and Robsinson Diaz to DH makes this pill a little bit easier to swallow.

This would be a terrible end to an illustrious career for the Big Hurt. If the Jays truly respected Thomas then they would've given him more days off than he needed in order for his '09 option not to vest, and then not resigned him at the end of this season. For the future, it's the right move. And what Riccardi said about it being too hard on the club in the playoff race to have a struggling player in their lineup everyday makes perfect sense. Thomas could very well catch on somewhere, and I wouldn't be surprised if he does. If he doesn't, this was a poor ending to an amazing career not haunted by steroids or steriod suspicion.

Sorry Frank...