Roy Allen Thomas (March 24, 1874 – November 20, 1959) was a

center fielder A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

. From 1899 through 1911, he played for the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

(1899–1908, 1910–1911),

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

(1908) and Boston Doves (1909). Thomas batted and threw left-handed. He was born in

Norristown, Pennsylvania Norristown is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough with Home Rule Municipality (Pennsylvania), home rule status and the county seat of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States, in the Delaware Valley, Philadelphia metropolitan area. Located ...

, and graduated from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

. Thomas was the brother of fellow Major Leaguer,

Bill Thomas William Marshall Thomas (born December 6, 1941) is an American politician. He was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1979 to 2007, finishing his tenure representing California's 22nd congressional district an ...

. According to baseball analyst

Bill James George William James (born October 5, 1949) is an American baseball writer, historian, and statistician whose work has been widely influential. Since 1977, James has written more than two dozen books about baseball history and statistics. His a ...

, Thomas is the only major league regular to have scored three times as many runs as he drove in. In 1470

games played Games played (GP) is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated (in any capacity); the statistic is generally applied irrespective of whatever portion of the game is contested. Associat ...

, Thomas compiled 1011 runs scored and 299 runs batted in, as he posted a .290

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

with a .413 on-base average and 244

stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base unaided by other actions and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or out ...

s. During his 13-season career, Thomas was one of the most productive table-setters in the

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

. His relentless patience at the plate infuriated opposing

pitchers In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws (" pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

(At one point, even being punched by Bill Phillips) and prompted the NL to change its rule regarding

foul ball In baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of ...

s in . The new rule also was adopted by the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...

two years later. He is, in fact, reported by James to hold the unofficial consecutive foul-ball record – 22, in one plate appearance. 19040404THOMASPHILLIES

Thomas batted .325 in his rookie year with a .457 OBP via 115 walks, immediately establishing himself as the Philadelphia Phillies'

leadoff hitter In baseball, a leadoff hitter is a batter who bats first in the batting order (baseball), lineup. It can also refer to any batter who bats first in any inning. Strategy Traditionally, the leadoff hitter has been utilized as a contact-oriented ...

and center fielder. At the time foul balls were not counted as strikes, and Thomas, who became adept at fouling off good pitches, worked an astonishing number of 230 walks in his first two seasons. Ironically the rule-change had little effect on Thomas. After the new rule went into effect, he led the NL in walks six out of the next seven seasons (1901–04, 1906–07). Thomas was sent to the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1908 midseason. He also played for the Boston Doves in 1909, returning to the Phillies for the 1910–11 seasons. At his retirement, he held career fielding records for center fielders in

putout In baseball statistics, a putout (PO) is awarded to a defensive player who (generally while in secure possession of the ball) records an out by one of the following methods: * Tagging a runner with the ball when he is not touching a base (a tag ...

s (NL) and fielding average (MLB). Thomas left a playing record that has endured. He ranks 20th all-time in

walk percentage Walk percentage (also known as Base-on-balls percentage, BB%, or BBP) is a baseball statistic criterion. The purpose of this offensive measurement is to gauge the percentage of a batter's plate appearances that result in the player being walked. ...

(.164), 29th all-time in

on-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batting (baseball), batter reaches base (baseball), base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA ...

(.412) and 84th all-time in walks (1,042). Thomas became a

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

with the

baseball team in 1909, and continued playing in the majors while coaching for three seasons. From 1909 to 1919, he compiled a record of 106–43–3 for a .632

winning percentage In sports, a winning percentage or Copeland score is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the to ...

, comparable to the best college coaches of all time. Thomas died in Norristown, Pennsylvania, at age 85, and was buried in the nearby Riverside Cemetery.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Roy 1874 births 1959 deaths 19th-century baseball players 19th-century American sportsmen Major League Baseball center fielders Boston Doves players Houston Buffaloes managers Philadelphia Phillies players Pittsburgh Pirates players Haverford Fords baseball coaches Penn Quakers baseball coaches Penn Quakers baseball players Baseball players from Norristown, Pennsylvania

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References

External links