| Lee Thomas | |
|---|---|
 | |
| First baseman /Right fielder | |
| Born:(1936-02-05)February 5, 1936 Peoria, Illinois, U.S. | |
| Died: August 31, 2022(2022-08-31) (aged 86) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| Professional debut | |
| MLB: April 22, 1961, for the New York Yankees | |
| NPB: 1969, for the Nankai Hawks | |
| Last appearance | |
| MLB: September 27, 1968, for the Houston Astros | |
| NPB: 1969, for the Nankai Hawks | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .255 |
| Home runs | 106 |
| Runs batted in | 428 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
James Leroy Thomas (February 5, 1936 – August 31, 2022) was an Americanfirst baseman andright fielder,coach and front-office executive inMajor League Baseball (MLB) who played for six teams from 1961 to 1968, most notably theLos Angeles Angels, then went on to a successful tenure asgeneral manager of thePhiladelphia Phillies. Traded to the Angels one month after the expansion franchise began play in 1961, he tied for third inRookie of the Year voting afterbatting .285 with 24home runs and 70runs batted in (RBI), primarily playing in the outfield. The following year, he was named to theAmerican League (AL)All-Star team after shifting to first base, and appeared in both All-Star games played that year as apinch hitter and late-inning defensive replacement. He finished the year with career highs in batting (.290), home runs (26) and RBI (104), but a sharp decline in 1963 led to his being traded to theBoston Red Sox in mid-1964, the first of four trades before the 1968 season.
After finishing his major league career with a .255 average, 106 home runs and 428 RBI, Thomas played for theNankai Hawks ofNippon Professional Baseball in 1969. He played one more season in the minor leagues, then joined theSt. Louis Cardinals as a coach for two years, followed by two years managing in the minors, before returning to the Cardinals organization to help them reach theWorld Series three times in the 1980s. Hired as the Phillies' general manager in 1988, he rebuilt the team's roster and assembled the team which advanced to the1993 World Series; he served in the role until 1997 before spending another twenty years serving four teams as a scout and front-office executive.
Thomas was born inPeoria, Illinois, on February 5, 1936,[1] and moved toSt. Louis, Missouri, with his family as a child. He graduated fromBeaumont High School in St. Louis in 1954, and was signed byNew York YankeesscoutLou Maguolo.[2] Thomas spent seven years in theminor leagues, putting up good offensive statistics inminor league baseball. He had twoat bats for the Yankees in 1961 and garnered one hit, apinchsingle off futureBaseball Hall of FamerHoyt Wilhelm, then with theBaltimore Orioles, on April 22 in his firstMLBat bat.[3][4]
On May 8, the Yankees traded Thomas,Ryne Duren, andJohnny James to the one-month-oldLos Angeles Angels forBob Cerv andTex Clevenger.[5] The trade began his five-year tenure as an everyday player: he appeared in 486 games for the Angels, and 258 more for theBoston Red Sox, who acquired him for outfielderLou Clinton on June 4, 1964.[6] From 1961 to 1965, Thomas topped the 20home run mark three times, and drove in 104runs batted in for the Angels in1962. On September 5, 1961, Thomas collected ninehits in 11at bats in adoubleheader against theKansas City Athletics, hitting three home runs and driving in eight runs in the nightcap.[7] He became one of eight players with nine hits in adoubleheader.[4] He was selected to the 1962 American LeagueAll-Star team, andpopped out as apinch hitter in that year'sfirst All-Star game, played atDC Stadium on July 10. In the year'ssecond All-Star game, played July 30 atWrigley Field, he appeared as a defensive replacement inleft field for the game's final twoinnings and did not bat.[2]
On December 15, 1965, the Red Sox traded Thomas,Arnold Earley, and aplayer to be named later (Jay Ritchie) to theAtlanta Braves forDan Osinski andBob Sadowski.[8] Thomas was the starting first baseman in the first game in the Braves'Atlanta history, going hitless in five at bats on April 12, 1966, against thePittsburgh Pirates atAtlanta Fulton County Stadium.[9] Thomas held the starting job for the first full month of the season hitting .198 in 126 at bats. On May 28, 1966, the Braves traded him to theChicago Cubs forTed Abernathy.[10] He then served as a part-time player andpinch hitter with the Cubs andHouston Astros, where he was dealt for two minor-league players on February 9, 1968,[11] through the end of the 1968 campaign. He played inNippon Professional Baseball for theNankai Hawks in 1969.[12] After he signed a minor league contract with theSt. Louis Cardinals organization for the 1970 season,[13] they assigned him to theTulsa Oilers of theAmerican Association, where he concluded his 17-year pro playing career at age 34.[14]
InMajor League Baseball, Thomas compiled a careerbatting average of .255 in 1,027games played with 847hits and 106 home runs.[15][16]
In 1971, Thomas joined theMLB Cardinals asbullpen coach. In 1973, he becamemanager of theGCL Red Birds in theRookie-levelGulf Coast League. Then, in 1974, Thomas moved up toClass A as skipper of theModesto Reds of theCalifornia League. Thomas moved into the Cardinals' front office in 1975, becoming traveling secretary and rising to the position of director of player development in 1980. He was a key member of the St. Louis organization during the club's run of success during the early to mid-1980s when the Cards, led bymanagerWhitey Herzog, won NL pennants in1982,1985 and1987 and the1982 World Series.[2]
In June1988, thePhiladelphia Phillies hired Thomas as theirgeneral manager. He acquired players such asCurt Schilling,Lenny Dykstra andMitch Williams, who played critical roles in the Phillies' 1993 pennant-winning team, which lost the1993 World Series to theToronto Blue Jays. That same year,The Sporting News named himExecutive of the Year for all of Major League Baseball.[2]
When four straight losing seasons followed the 1993 pennant, Thomas was fired and replaced as general manager byEd Wade, his assistant.[17][18] He then returned to the Red Sox as a special assistant toDan Duquette, Boston's general manager, in 1998.[19] He played a key role in Boston's signing offree agent outfieldersManny Ramírez in December 2000 andJohnny Damon one year later. He served the Astros and theMilwaukee Brewers as ascout,[20] and on December 4, 2011, he joined theBaltimore Orioles as a special assistant to Duquette, who was the executive vice president.[21] He served in the role until the end of the2018 season.[21][22]
Thomas was married twice and had four children.[2] He died at his home in St. Louis on August 31, 2022, at age 86.[23]
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Philadelphia PhilliesGeneral Manager 1988–1997 | Succeeded by |
| Awards and achievements | ||
| Preceded by | Sporting NewsMajor League BaseballExecutive of the Year 1993 | Succeeded by |