HR0913 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0913 LRB100 21128 MST 37065 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Jim Thome was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame on January 24, 2018 as a first ballot inductee, after an illustrious 22-year career in Major League Baseball (MLB); and

WHEREAS, Over the course of his baseball career, Jim Thome hit 612 home runs, batted in 1,699 runs, had a batting average of .276, and a total of 2,328 hits; he was a five time all-star, Silver Slugger Award Winner, American League Comeback Player of the Year, Roberto Clemente Award Winner, and National League home run leader in 2003; he has been inducted into both the Cleveland Indians Hall of Fame and the Philadelphia Phillies Hall of Fame; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome was born in Peoria on August 27, 1970, the youngest of five children, all of whom were athletic and involved in sports; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome's earliest baseball instruction came from his father and older brothers before he began to play American Legion Baseball for Bartonville Limestone Post 979; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome attended Limestone High School, where he received all-state honors in both basketball and baseball; he continued his career in both basketball and baseball at Illinois Central College, where he was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 13th round of the 1989 MLB draft; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome's 22-year professional career began with the Cleveland Indians in 1991, where he was an offensive leader for a team that went to two World Series in the mid-90s; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome continued his career by playing for the Philadelphia Phillies from 2003 to 2005 until he was traded to the Chicago White Sox after the 2005 season; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome had a very successful career for the Chicago White Sox, where in his first season he set a team record for most home runs in the month of April, and also a Major League Baseball record by scoring in each of Chicago's first 17 games; and

WHEREAS, On September 16, 2007, with his father and several other family members in attendance, Jim Thome joined the 500 home run club with a walk-off home run against the Los Angeles Angels; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome spent the 2009 season with the Los Angeles Dodgers before signing with the Minnesota Twins, where he hit numerous home runs, including the longest ever at Target Field, and became only the ninth MLB player to hit at least 600 home runs in his career; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome spent the 2011 season with the Cleveland Indians, where he became the Indians' all-time home run leader, and it was announced that a statue of him would be erected, which was unveiled in 2014; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome spent the 2012 season with the Philadelphia Phillies, where he became the fourth MLB player to hit 100 home runs with three different teams and set the new record for most walk-off home runs during a career in the modern era with 13; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome spent the remainder of the 2012 season with the Baltimore Orioles, where he surpassed Sammy Sosa to become the MLB player with the eighth highest number of home runs in a career with 612, a statistic which still stands today; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome was well known in MLB for several memorable traits, such as wearing high socks, which his team donned in the 1997 season all the way to the World Series, and his unique batting stance that featured him pointing his bat to centerfield prior to the pitch; and

WHEREAS, Even more memorable than those traits, Jim Thome's personality has been the subject of much praise across the MLB; a former teammate called him the "nicest, gentlest, kindest guy you will ever meet ... " and his positivity was cited as one of the main reasons for his resigning in 2012 with the Phillies; he was known for frequently signing autographs for fans and for his endless patience; in Philadelphia, magazine sportswriter Stephen Silver wrote of Thome: "It's not just the numbers. Thanks to his gregarious personality, Thome is the rare athlete who played in several cities and was beloved everywhere he went. I saw the Twins and Phillies play each other in Philadelphia when Thome was with the Twins, and the same two teams in Minnesota two years later when Thome was a Phillie, and the opposing crowd cheered Thome both times, even when he hit home runs for the road team. Thome was similarly loved in his long stints in Cleveland and Chicago, as well as shorter runs in Los Angeles and Baltimore."; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome and his wife, Andrea, have three children, Lila, Grace, and Landon, and currently reside in Burr Ridge; and

WHEREAS, Jim Thome is known for his many philanthropic works to help provide help to communities in the cities where he played; in recognition of his efforts, he was given the Marin Miller Man of the Year Award in 2001 and 2004 and the Lou Gehrig Memorial Award in 2004; he and his wife are avid supporters of Children's Home & Aid, a child and family service agency, which raises money for the Children's Hospital of Illinois; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize Jim Thome and everything that he has accomplished throughout his distinguished career, and we respect and admire his continued philanthropic efforts towards the sport and communities he loves; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we declare May 9, 2018 as "Jim Thome Day" in the State of Illinois as a sign of our esteem and respect; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Jim Thome as a symbol of our respect and esteem.