http://www.yardbarker.com/content/player/628 Recent articles about Frank Thomas en-us Why Sidney Ponson and Franklyn German can't be trusted any further than you can throw them; the Texas Rangers struggle to turn the early-season home turnstiles; touching base with the farm contingent. Mon, 12 May 2008 13:15:56 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266091 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/266091 What baseball fan doesn't feel me on this one? Every team has 'em — opposing players who have seemingly made their livings, earning phat contracts at the hands of their favorite clubs. Be they All-Stars, Hall of Famers or just average performers; they beat, bash, bludgeon and build stats that would make the Babe blush — at our expense. With that in mind it is time to examine a starting line-up of current players who have made the Twins look like little leaguers over the years. The assembled Competitve Twinkie Eating Champions have combined for 53 All-Star berths and 4 MVP's. Twins fans, say it with me: You're welcome! Mon, 12 May 2008 02:39:15 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/265917 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/265917 With almost 40 games down the baseball season is rapidly approaching the panic crunch. Teams will have to decide whether they will continue and try to win their division or start to face the reality that they just weren't very good this season. Players on the other hand are trying to figure out why their just aren't producing this season and will be looking for reasons for their current teams to continue to pay them mega contracts for little production. We'll go ahead and take a look at a few of the recent moves that signal that this time of the season is indeed upon us. CLICK THE LINK TO READ THE REST Sat, 10 May 2008 11:31:46 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/265467 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/265467 It's definitely a possibility. Jon Heyman of cnnsi.com speculates (pure speculation), that when New York Yankees catcher Jorge Posada returns, 1B Jason Giambi would become a candidate for release. There would obviously be a few things that have to happen for this to take place thou. Wed, 07 May 2008 19:29:55 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/264523 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/264523 The other day the Big Hurt hit a triple! When was the last time this "Vitamin B" taking behemoth hit one? Fri, 02 May 2008 08:05:05 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/262663 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/262663 As soon as the Toronto Blue Jays released Frank Thomas rumors began to fly that they would be interested in Barry Bonds. Talk of Bonds in a Jays uniform has silenced, but if they hope to contend this season they should seriously consider bringing in baseball's home run king. Wed, 30 Apr 2008 11:45:43 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/261724 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/261724 We're now a month into the baseball season and it's time to scan the rosters of the teams in your league to find some underachieving stars who can be acquired on the cheap. The strategy is to find a vulnerable owner who is tired of carrying the dead weight of such a player, and whose stats are bringing down the rest of his team. Not all owners are impatient or have a quick trigger finger on making deals, but if you look hard enough you'll find at least one - and all it takes is one. This owner has likely become frustrated and is probably looking to "shake things up". If you have something he likes, then you'll be able to acquire an established talent for a bargain. Below is a list of some players at every position who have had a terrible April, but could get close to posting their customary numbers. Many of these players have a level of risk attached to them for various reasons, but if the value exchange is right for you in a deal - and there is a fit within your team - then the upside should top the potential downside. Read the list of players here: http://www.thefantasysportsforum.com/article.php?ID=271 Wed, 30 Apr 2008 09:37:32 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/261656 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/261656 That's what the search results on Google and Wikipedia say. With screen caps Wed, 30 Apr 2008 09:09:00 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/261634 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/261634 Adding a player from the waiver wire isn't about chasing the best deals available. It is important to know what your team needs before you go free agent shopping. The question is, do you know what your team actually needs? AccuScore fantasy expert Tim Williams shows you a three step method of evaluating your teams needs, allowing you to determine if adding Frank Thomas will actually help your team. Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:00:49 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/257422 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/257422 I sort of wish the Tigers would have gotten Hurt. It would have been an appropriate person to add to the roster, considering all the injuries they've had to withstand in April. I'm talking about Frank Thomas, The Big Hurt. Dispatched by the Toronto Blue Jays in rather ugly fashion, Thomas sat unemployed for three days before one of his former teams, the Oakland A's, snatched him up yesterday for an obscene price tag of about $330,000 -- the pro-rated MLB minimum. With Gary Sheffield's shoulder "not firing", how nice and menacing would Thomas look in a Tigers uniform right about now? No sense crying over spilled milk, I suppose, but Sheff's shoulder is making me nervous. I wonder, frankly, if he'll EVER be back to normal. It still wouldn't surprise me if he retired before the end of the season. I just get that sense. Male intuition. Do not talk to me about Barry Bonds. I know he's tempting to consider, but it would be far more trouble than it's worth. Trust me. It's been frustrating, that the Tigers cannot seem to get their prized 1-thru-9 order into the same game at the same time. Back comes Curtis Granderson, out goes Sheff and Placido Polanco. In comes Polanco, out goes Jacque Jones and Carlos Guillen. And on and on. "We can't catch a break," Leyland lamented to the papers yesterday about all the hurts. The biggest Hurt is in Oakland; too bad the Tigers didn't get in on some of that action. The truth is, the Tigers should have enough firepower to overcome most opponents with Sheffield recuperating. But I look at how the team struggled so much while he missed time last season, and I can only wonder how much he could help this star-studded lineup when healthy. In other words, it's not so much that Sheffield should have to stir this drink; but he definitely adds some fizz. It's easy to defend GM Dave Dombrowski on the Frank Thomas thing. If you get him, and Sheffield ends up being OK, then you have a crowded roster. And Thomas's beef with the Jays was a lack of playing time. So I'm not blasting DD here; I think it was just a matter of bad timing. Had Thomas become available with Sheff on the DL or worse, then I'm confident DD would have made a play. That said, Sheffield's absence is rather significant, no matter how you cut it. There still may be a roster move this summer; chances are, the Tigers' next DH is currently playing for another big league team. Fri, 25 Apr 2008 12:09:07 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/257388 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/257388 Thomas will step in as the A's full-time DH replacing the Jack Cust/Ryan Sweeney platoon they had been using. The new A's lineup will look something like this: C- Kurt Suzuki 1B - Daric Barton/Mike Sweeney 2B - Mark Ellis 3B - Jack Hannahan/Donnie Murphy SS - Bobby Crosby LF - Jack Cust CF - Ryan Sweeney RF - Emil Brown DH - Frank Thomas Fri, 25 Apr 2008 10:12:49 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/257263 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/257263 Oakland hopes for a playoff run like the 2006 year. Thu, 24 Apr 2008 15:39:03 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256597 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256597 The A's just signed Frank back to play. I think good old Billy has forgotten to take his meds. Thu, 24 Apr 2008 14:16:45 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256528 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256528 Frank Thomas has signed on with the Oakland A's. We explain what this means for the slugger and the players around him in the A's lineup. Thu, 24 Apr 2008 11:52:05 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256424 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256424 It looked as though the Oakland A's were about to sign Frank Thomas, but the Seattle Mariners have reportedly put in a late bid to complicate their efforts. Thu, 24 Apr 2008 02:40:12 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256138 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/256138