Baseball Career
After two years at Seminole Community College, Thigpen moved on to pitch and play the outfield for Mississippi State University and coach Ron Polk. Among his teammates were future major-leaguers Will Clark, Rafael Palmeiro and Jeff Brantley. Thigpen was part of MSU's 1985 College World Series team, recording a .305 batting average and saving seven games during the season.
Thigpen was selected by the Chicago White Sox in the fourth round of the 1985 amateur draft. He made the major leagues the next August and moved into the White Sox's closer role. After two straight 30-save seasons, Thigpen had the best season of his career in 1990, setting the then-major league record of 57 saves. He also maintained a 1.83 ERA and was named to the AL All-Star team. He also blew eight saves that season, including two three-run leads.
He later began to battle injuries, starting with a back problem developed after the 1990 season, when some players went on an exhibition tour of Japan. Thigpen's effectiveness waned and he was supplanted in the closer role by Roberto Hernández.
During the 1993 season, Thigpen was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies for José DeLeón, and pitched in the NLCS and World Series for Philadelphia. The following season, he signed with the Seattle Mariners, who released him on April 29. He joined the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks and attempted to return to the majors in 1996, only to be derailed by back problems.
Thigpen's 201 career saves rank him 41st on the all-time saves list.
Read more about this topic: Bobby Thigpen
Famous quotes containing the words baseball and/or career:
“When Dad can’t get the diaper on straight, we laugh at him as though he were trying to walk around in high-heel shoes. Do we ever assist him by pointing out that all you have to do is lay out the diaper like a baseball diamond, put the kid’s butt on the pitcher’s mound, bring home plate up, then fasten the tapes at first and third base?”
—Michael K. Meyerhoff (20th century)
“They want to play at being mothers. So let them. Expressing tenderness in their own way will not prevent girls from enjoying a successful career in the future; indeed, the ability to nurture is as valuable a skill in the workplace as the ability to lead.”
—Anne Roiphe (20th century)