The Cleveland Indians took the number 25 of Hall-of-Famer Jim Thome out of circulation on Saturday. In a ceremony before the 1-2 defeat of the Baltimore Orioles in Progressive Field, the team honored the former First Baseman.
At the end of the celebrations, Thome’s last rut around the bases with his son Landon before being welcomed by his former teammates at the Home Plate.
Number 25 will be placed in the Upper Deck of the Ballpark and now hangs between Bob Lemon’s 21 and Larry Doby’s 14, both of which are also immortalized in the Hall of Fame.
“It gives me goose bumps when I see my number up there in the company of Bob Feller, Lou Boudreau, Jackie Robinson, Mel Harder, Larry Doby, Earl Averill, Bob Lemon and Frank Robinson. It’s like Field of Dreams.
Besides son Landon, Thome’s wife Andrea, daughter Lila and his father Chuck were also present. Among the former companions were Omar Vizquel, Kenny Lofton, Carlos Baerga, Charlie Manuel and Mike Hargrove.
“To this day, these boys are my brothers and I am very touched that you all took the time to be here today,” Thome told his former teammates and managers.
Thome played for Cleveland from 1992 to 2001 and then again in 2011, beating a total of 337 home runs, which is still the franchise record today.
This article was published without previous view by the Major League Baseball.