Richard William Thon (born June 20, 1958) is a Puerto Rican-American former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...

who played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for the California Angels, Houston Astros,

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

, Philadelphia Phillies, Texas Rangers, and Milwaukee Brewers, during the course of his 15-year big league career.

Early life

Thon was raised in

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

after spending only the first two weeks of his life in Indiana where his father had just completed a bachelor's degree at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic university, Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend, Indiana, South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin fo ...

Professional career

He was signed by the California Angels as an amateur free agent on November 23, 1975, while in high school in

Río Piedras, Puerto Rico Río Piedras is a populous district of San Juan, and former town and municipality of Puerto Rico, which was merged with the municipality of San Juan in 1951. The district today is composed of various '' barrios'' (these are the primary legal divi ...

. During his 15-year career, Thon spent two seasons with the Angels (1979–1980), seven seasons with the Houston Astros (1981–1987), one season with the

(1988), three seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies (1989–1991), one season with the Texas Rangers (1992), and finished his career with the Milwaukee Brewers (1993). He led the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

in triples in 1982 and was selected to the 1983 All-Star Game.

Potential and beaning

By 1984, Thon was drawing excitement about his potential. "He's already the best shortstop in the league," said Craig Reynolds, whom Thon had replaced as the Astro shortstop.

Al Rosen Albert Leonard Rosen (February 29, 1924 – March 13, 2015), nicknamed "Flip" and "The Hebrew Hammer", was an American baseball third baseman and right-handed slugger for the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball for ten seasons in the 194 ...

, Thon's general manager, said, "when I see Dickie Thon, I see a future Hall of Famer." His career was permanently altered on April 8, 1984, when he was hit in the face by Mike Torrez's fastball. Bill James thinks Thon might have been a Hall of Famer had the injury not occurred. The pitch broke the orbital bone around his left eye and ended his 1984 season. He returned in 1985, but had problems with depth perception that permanently hampered his potential. In 1991, Thon received the

Tony Conigliaro Award The Tony Conigliaro Award is a national recognition instituted in 1990 by the Boston Red Sox to honor the memory of Tony Conigliaro. It is given annually to a Major League Baseball (MLB) player who best "overcomes an obstacle and adversity throu ...

in recognition of his recovery from this severe injury. In 2013, Thon said, "I couldn't see the ball very well after I got hit in my left eye. I had to make adjustments, and open up a little bit and see the ball better. It's tough to do that in the big leagues, but I did manage to play 10

ore Ore is natural rock or sediment that contains one or more valuable minerals, typically containing metals, that can be mined, treated and sold at a profit.Encyclopædia Britannica. "Ore". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 7 Apr ...

years."Thon reflects on injury after Stassi, Heyward are hit: Once-promising Astros shortstop suffered vision problems after fastball hit face
MLB, Brian McTaggart, Aug. 22, 2013. He viewed the injury as just one bad moment in a life filled mostly with blessings: "I've had a lot of good things happen to me. I try to think about it that way."

Personal life

Thon is a third-generation baseball player. He is the grandson of Freddie Thon Sr., a native Puerto Rican who played and managed in the Puerto Rican Baseball League during World War II. His father Freddie Thon Jr., who signed a major-league contract but injured his arm before reporting to training, played semi-pro baseball while finishing college at Notre Dame, and coached all of his sons throughout their Little League and teenage years. Dickie's brother Frankie Thon is also affiliated with major league baseball in both the U.S. and Puerto Rico having been a player, a manager and a current major-league scout, as well as the general manager of the Criollos de Caguas in the Puerto Rican League. Thon's son, Dickie Joe Thon, was selected by the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

in the 5th round, 156th overall in the June 2010 baseball draft and played the 2016 season for the

Dunedin Blue Jays The Dunedin Blue Jays are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and are the Single-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays Major League Baseball club. They are located in Dunedin, Florida, and play their home games at TD Ballpar ...

. Thon joined the Astros coaching staff in 2021, and in 2022, the junior Thon was named manager for the

Fayetteville Woodpeckers The Fayetteville Woodpeckers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Carolina League and the Single-A affiliate of the Houston Astros. They are located in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and play their home games at Segra Stadium. From 2017 to ...

, the Low-A club for the Astros. Thon was inducted into the

Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum was founded in San Francisco, California on October 24, 1998, by Amaury Pi-Gonzalez Amaury Pi-Gonzalez is a Spanish language Major League Baseball announcer. He is the only major league baseball announcer to h ...

Hall of Fame on September 13, 2003. As of 2013, Thon owned a Puerto Rican Winter League team in Santurce. He is a devout Catholic.

References

External links