Former Indians Slugger Jim Thome Reflects One Week Before Entering the Hall of Fame; Four Takeaways

.

1. The 600th Homer and the Build Up After 599

The date was August 16th, 2011, and Jim Thome sat at 598 home runs, ready to do battle in a game against the Tigers at Comerica Park in Detroit as a member of the Twins.

He came up in the sixth inning and belted a two-run blast to get to 599, meaning that one more homer and he would become just the 8th player in MLB history to hit 600 round trippers.

Little did he know that just one inning later, he’d make history, blasting a pitch off Daniel Schlereth over the wall in left for a three-run shot and more importantly a trip into history.

The milestone came on a 2-1 pitch, and while Thome didn’t sit on homer 599 very long, he wasn’t sure just when number 600 would come along. To have it happen just one inning later was a moment he’d never forget.

“You know how baseball works, home runs can come in bunches, and home runs can take a long time to hit. The excitement and the build up, I was sure hoping it would come quick, and it did, which was so great for my family and the Twins organization which was a great organization to play for, to get a chance to do it quickly was very special,” Thome said.

“The Detroit fans that night were first class, they gave a standing ovation, you don’t see an opponent get a lot of standing ovations, and that was very special to me.”

The 600th homeurn ball now sits in the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, a place where a bust of Thome will sit for eternity come next week.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5