Jim Thome passes Mark McGwire for ninth place on all-time home-run list
Sep 4, 2010, 6:05 PM EDT
Jim Thome has connected for a pair of home runs during this afternoon’s game against the Rangers, passing Mark McGwire for ninth place on baseball’s all-time home run list. He slugged No. 583 in the third inning and No. 584 — a three-run shot — in the fourth.
Incredibly, the 40-year-old Thome now has 20 homers in just 279 at-bats this season. The fourth-inning blast marked the 16th time in his career that the veteran slugger has reached at least 20 home runs in a season. Hank Aaron holds the all-time mark with 20 seasons of 20-plus homers. Thome is the first 40-something to reach 20 homers since Barry Bonds did it at age 42 during the 2007 campaign.
Thome doesn’t have enough at-bats to qualify, but if he did, he would be fourth in the American League with a 996 OPS right now. Pretty darn impressive. Even more so when you realize that only Barry Bonds and Ted Williams have posted a higher OPS in a single season after turning 40 years old.
With McGwire out of the way, Thome will now set his sights on Frank Robinson, who ranks eighth all-time with 586 home runs. At this rate, he’ll probably pass him by the end of the weekend.
-
- Mrsteve - Sep 4, 2010 at 9:04 PM
-
Too bad his back will not let him play every game.
That shot to right was a bomb.
-
- cusoman - Sep 4, 2010 at 11:38 PM
-
Couldn’t keep happening (passing all time greats on this record list) to a nicer guy. We should be following this guy’s home run record run, not A-Rod’s. The difference between the two as people is night and day. I mean, who would YOU want your kid to look up to? Thome or A-Rod? It’s a no-brainer.
-
- Cru11 - Sep 5, 2010 at 6:06 AM
-
He is putting all of his 10 nieces and nephews through college.
-
- avg joe - Sep 6, 2010 at 1:49 PM
-
I am so so so glad that he came to Minnesota. I hope he stays here until he retires.
