A year to forget, and frankly, that might be generous
- Rating: 4.44
- MLB Stats: 39 g, 0 bWAR/-0.2 fWAR, .189/.245/.603
- Date of birth: April 28th, 2000
- Earnings: Pre-arbitration
- 2025 status: On the 40 man roster. For now?
I think it speaks to the impact that Alek Thomas had on the team last season how highly rated he was in this poll, because I think that if you were to give this stat line to the electorate without a name or pivotal postseason three-run home run attached, you would find a much less rosy distribution of votes. Because Thomas finished his season with an on base percentage merely .014 higher than Corbin Carrol’s disappointing batting average.
But how did we get to such an uninspiring end? Well, like so many others it seems, it started with a hamstring injury. Thomas made the team out of Spring Training and started the first three games against the Rockies at home. In those games, he collected three hits, four RBI, a home run, and a double. In the fourth, however, he strained his hamstring and set down a long, meandering rehab..
He was out of action for a while, but he began a rehab assignment in Reno to begin May. In the game on May 7th, however, he experienced more discomfort in the hamstring and was sent back to Phoenix for further evaluation. That evaluation turned into a PRP injection a week later, prompting Torey Lovullo to straight up say “He’s not close to getting back in a game. He needs to rest and let this thing settle down.”
That remained the story through the end of June, when he finally was able to complete a rehab assignment, then joined the team in on July 2nd. He was a fixture on the team at this time, getting 16 that month, out of 23 games played. The question was, should he have been starting? The numbers were not great to say the least. He was hitting .200, with only four walks to bolster the OBP. The power was nonexistent with a mere two home runs and four doubles. It was beyond a shadow of a doubt a rough month for the young 24 year old, but perhaps it could be attributed to rust.
If that was the case, however, it only got worse in August. Thomas got an additional 10 games before August 13th and only managed three hits, none for extra bases. His batting average was .191, and Hazen and Co. decided they had seen enough for now, and optioned him to Reno in exchange for Blaze Alexander.
The bad luck did not stop there for the outfielder. He managed just three appearances for Reno before he strained his oblique, sidelining him for another month. He was activated in Reno on September 17th, and he was again brought up to the big club for two games at the tail end of the season. Nothing in any of those games moved the needle much, and Thomas’ disappointing season ended without much protest.
The offseason could be just as interesting for Thomas as his regular season was, however. Mike Hazen was quoted as saying at the GM meetings that he had been getting calls from several teams regarding his center fielders. One would have to imagine that this would be selling Thomas at the absolute bottom of his value, but that is without knowledge of what is being offered for him… or who is being offered with him. As it stands right now, however, Thomas has a place in this organization and stands a good shot of making the Opening Day roster, especially as the team is currently constructed.
If that comes to pass, though, only time will tell.