Thome shows Cubs what they missed
nwitimes.com
CHICAGO - Jim Thome sounded like he was auditioning for the Jimmy Stewart role in a remake of "It's a Wonderful Life." Or maybe he was channeling Lou Gehrig calling himself the luckiest man alive at his Yankee Stadium farewell.
Check out a couple of sound bites from the home clubhouse after Friday's 6-1 White Sox over the Cubs and judge for yourself.
Thome on facing future Hall of Famer Greg Maddux: "We were very fortunate to get some pitches to hit and did it."
Thome, again on Maddux: "He knows what he's doing, he's a winner. We were fortunate we had a good day."
Yes, it was another good day in a season full of them for Thome and the White Sox, who may not yet own the town but do own their crosstown rivals.
Even Cubs manager Dusty Baker admitted after the Sox's easy win at the Cell that the Cubs, as currently constituted, are overmatched when they take on their neighbors down the Red Line.
Thome is as big a reason for that as anybody. He's probably already got the Comeback Player of the Year award in his back pocket, and who's a better MVP candidate in the AL?
Though Maddux got him looking in his first at-bat, Thome evened the score by homering -- to left field, no less -- in the fifth inning. That's 17 homers and 41 RBIs and counting for Thome, both tops in the American League heading into Friday night's games.
And to think he could be doing all that damage for the Cubs, a team he wanted to play for when he left Cleveland as a free agent in 2002.
Thome grew up near Peoria, where the Cubs used to have a Class A farm club, and talked fondly on Friday about going to games at Wrigley Field with his dad.
On Friday, he figures he had about 13 assorted family members and friends on hand as part of a sellout crowd of 39,301.
Thome is making Sox general manager Kenny Williams look like a genius now. The back and elbow problems that limited Thome to 64 games in a final, unhappy season in Philadelphia are just a fading memory.
Thome could have been the talk of the town earlier if he'd been able to talk Cubs general manager Jim Hendry into signing him then, but the Cubs passed. Though Hendry stole the now-sidelined Derrek Lee from the Marlins to plug the hole at first base, you have to wonder how things would have played out had Thome arrived in Chicago sooner.
You may wonder, but Thome doesn't.
Given the chance to toss an "I told you so" in the Cubs' direction, he took the high road on Friday.
"For me, the past is in the past," he said. "That's over with. Things didn't work out."
You don't have to tell the Cubs that, Jim. It's the story of their life. |
