Roy Justin Thomas (born June 22, 1953) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

pitcher 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 ...

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) who played for the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

and

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...

in all or parts of eight seasons spanning 1977–1987. Listed at 6' 5" and 215 pounds, Thomas batted and threw right-handed. He was born in

Quantico, Virginia Quantico ( or ; formerly Potomac) is a town in Prince William County, Virginia, United States. The population was 480 at the 2010 census. Quantico is approximately 35 miles southwest of Washington, DC, bordered by the Potomac River to the east a ...

Career

Philadelphia Phillies

Thomas grew up in

Lompoc, California Lompoc ( ; Chumash: ''Lum Poc'') is a city in Santa Barbara County, California. Located on the Central Coast, Lompoc has a population of 43,834 as of July 2021. Lompoc has been inhabited for thousands of years by the Chumash people, who called ...

, and was the star pitcher of the Lompoc Nationals

Little League Little League Baseball and Softball (officially, Little League Baseball Inc) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization Lompoc High School Lompoc High School is a public high school serving Lompoc, in northern Santa Barbara County, California, United States. It was first established in the small farming community in 1892. It is part of the Lompoc Unified School District, as is cros ...

, he was teammates with

Roy Howell Roy Lee Howell (born December 18, 1953) is an American former professional baseball third baseman, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1974–1984 for the Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, and Milwaukee Brewers. Professional career ...

. He was selected sixth overall in the 1971 MLB draft by the

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

out of Lompoc High at eighteen years old. After a brief stint with the

Northwest League The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Pacific Northwest, Northwestern United States and Western Canada. A Class A Short Season league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Maj ...

's Walla Walla Phillies in , in which he gave up fourteen

earned run In baseball, an earned run is any run that was fully enabled by the offensive team's production in the face of competent play from the defensive team. Conversely, an unearned run is a run that would not have been scored without the aid of an err ...

s in twelve

innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one innin ...

, Thomas went 11-7 with a 3.43

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

in 24 starts in his first full minor league season in with the

Western Carolinas League Portion of plaque displaying likeness of John Henry Moss at Municipal Stadium, Hagerstown, Maryland The Western Carolinas League was a Class D (1948–52; 1960–62) and a low Class A (1963–79) full-season league in American minor league base ...

Spartanburg Phillies Spartanburg is a city in and the seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The city of Spartanburg has a municipal population of 38,732 as of the 2020 census, making it the 11th-largest city in the state. For a time, the Offic ...

. He went 17-8 with a stellar 2.14 ERA and 207

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

s with the

Rocky Mount Phillies The Rocky Mount Phillies were a baseball team, a Class-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies from 1973 through 1975. They played in the Carolina League and won the league championship in 1975. The Rocky Mount Phillies replaced the Rocky Moun ...

and

Reading Phillies Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

in to earn an invitation to

Spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

the following season, but failed to earn a spot in the Phillies' rotation.

Chicago White Sox

After two more seasons in the Phillies'

farm system In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

, the once deemed "untouchable" Thomas was dealt to the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...

along with

Dick Ruthven Richard David Ruthven (born March 27, 1951) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from through for the Philadelphia Phillies, Atlanta Braves, and Chicago Cubs. The two ...

and

Alan Bannister Alan Bannister (born September 3, 1951) is a retired professional baseball player who played in the major leagues for the Philadelphia Phillies Chicago White Sox (1976–80), Cleveland Indians Houston Astros (1984) and Texas Rangers Original ...

in exchange for

Jim Kaat James Lee Kaat (; born November 7, 1938) is an American former professional baseball player and television sports commentator. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a left-handed pitcher for the Washington Senators / Minnesota Twins (–), ...

and

Mike Buskey Michael Thomas Buskey (born January 13, 1949) is an American former professional baseball infielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies in . Buskey batted and threw right-handed. During his playing days, he sto ...

on December 10, . In his only season in the Sox organization, Thomas went 6-11 with a 3.75 ERA with their Triple-A affiliate, the Iowa Oaks. Afterwards, he was selected by the Seattle Mariners with the 31st pick in the

1976 MLB expansion draft The 1976 MLB Expansion Draft was held November 5, 1976. This expansion draft was conducted by Major League Baseball to stock the major league rosters of the Toronto Blue Jays and the Seattle Mariners, new major league expansion franchises establis ...

. The Mariners then placed him on waivers toward the end of spring training, then worked out a trade to the

for

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. ...

Larry Milbourne Lawrence William Milbourne (born February 14, 1951) is an American former professional baseball utility infielder whose career spanned 15 seasons, 11 of which were spent in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Houston Astros (1974–76), Seattl ...

Houston Astros

Thomas was converted to a

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue (medical), fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection (sports), ejection, or for other strategic ...

in , and went 11-6 with a 3.16 ERA and six saves for the triple A

Charleston Charlies The Charleston Charlies were a Triple-A minor league baseball team located in Charleston, West Virginia. Two separate Charlies franchises played in the International League from 1971 to 1983. The team was the relocated Columbus Jets. In 1977 the ...

to earn a call up to Houston that September. The only two MLB teams Thomas faced in were the last place

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. The Braves ...

, and the eventual

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 s ...

champion

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

. In his two games against the Braves, Thomas blew a save opportunity while surrendering four hits and two earned runs in 2.1 innings pitched. In his two games against the Dodgers, he pitched four

inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other team ...

s and gave up just one hit while striking out two.

St. Louis Cardinals

Thomas returned to Charleston in to go 9-4 with a 3.14 ERA mostly in relief. On June 23, he was selected off waivers by the

, and brought directly to the majors. In his first appearance with the Cardinals, Thomas earned a win by pitching two scoreless innings in an

extra innings Extra innings is the extension of a baseball or softball game in order to break a tie. Ordinarily, a baseball game consists of nine regulation innings (in softball and high school baseball games there are typically seven innings; in Little Lea ...

affair with the

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 (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

. He earned saves in his next two appearances against the

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

, but was roughed up by the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

in his next two outings. After one more relief appearance, he made an emergency start against the

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 penna ...

, and gave up five runs in four innings for his first career loss. He returned to the

bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if t ...

after that, and earned one save with a 1.54 ERA the rest of the way. Thomas began the season assigned to the triple A Springfield Redbirds, where he was converted back to a starter. He was called up July 1, and immediate made his first start in the second game of a doubleheader with the Phillies. He gave up one earned run in seven innings, but did not figure in the decision. He earned his first win as a starter on August 7 against the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

. Overall, Thomas went 3-4 with a 2.92 ERA and one save mostly in middle relief. He earned a spot in the Cardinals' bullpen in Spring , but got off to a horrible start to the regular season (11.57 ERA & 1 blown save in April). He then entered the starting rotation, and made the finest start of his major league career on May 14 against the Padres. In seven innings, he surrendered five hits and one earned run to earn the win. On May 30, after returning to the bullpen, he struck Montreal Expos

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

Ellis Valentine Ellis Clarence Valentine (born July 30, 1954) is a former Major League Baseball right fielder. He is remembered for having one of the all-time great throwing arms. "There's a plateau where you can't throw the ball any harder and you can't be any m ...

in the face with a pitch, shattering his cheekbone. He remained in the Cards' bullpen another month until he was optioned down to Springfield to make room for

Silvio Martinez Silvio () is an Italian male name, the male equivalent of Silvia. Sílvio is a variant of the name in Portuguese. It is derived from the Latin "Silvius", meaning "spirit of the wood," and may refer to: People * Silvio Berlusconi (born 1936), Itali ...

's return from the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

. After the season, he was drafted by the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

in the 1980 rule 5 draft.

Seattle Mariners

In , Thomas went 12-8 with a 3.05 ERA and 111 strikeouts for Oakland's triple A affiliate, the Tacoma Tigers, but did not see any major league experience. After the season, he was dealt to the Seattle Mariners for minor leaguers Tim Hallgren and Rusty McNealy. He spent his first Spring with his new club in the majors, but was shipped to the triple A

Salt Lake City Gulls Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quantitie ...

just as the season was set to begin. He successfully made the club the following Spring, and spent his first full season in the majors in , when he went 3-1 with a 3.45 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 43 appearances. His 88.2 innings pitched was tops for a right hander on the club. A sore elbow in his pitching arm derailed his season. Though he was only with the M's for a little over half the season, he appeared in 21 games and pitched 49.2 innings. He returned healthy in , but failed to make the club. He actually retired briefly, but reconsidered, and began the season in the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

with the

Calgary Cannons The Calgary Cannons were a minor league baseball team located in Calgary, Alberta, for 18 seasons, from 1985 until 2002. They were a member of the AAA Pacific Coast League (PCL) and played at Foothills Stadium. The Cannons displaced the Calgary ...

. He was brought up to Seattle in late May, and immediately became

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

Chuck Cottier's favorite arm out of the bullpen. The Mariners set a franchise record with an eight-game winning streak in late June. Thomas appeared in three games during that stretch, and earned two wins while holding opposing batters to a .190

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 ...

. When fortunes reversed, and the M's were on a six-game losing streak in late July, Thomas pitched 6.1 brilliant innings of relief against the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

champion

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

to break the streak. Despite having missed almost two months of the season, he pitched a team high 93.2 innings in relief, compiling a 7-0 record with a 3.36 ERA and seventy strikeouts. As a result, Thomas earned the distinction of having compiled the most wins without a loss ever on a team with a losing record when he went 7-0 for the 1985 Seattle Mariners (74-88).Sele (7-0), Mariners Keep Up Torrid Pace
''Los Angeles Times''. Retrieved on February 27, 2016. This record would be matched by

Aaron Sele Aaron Helmer Sele (born June 25, 1970) is an American former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher who is currently a special assignment scout for the Chicago Cubs. Early years His family moved to Poulsbo, Washington, a town on the Kitsap ...

in the 2001 Mariners season. His sore elbow returned just as the season was set to start. As it turned out, he had elbow

tendinitis Tendinopathy, a type of tendon disorder that results in pain, swelling, and impaired function. The pain is typically worse with movement. It most commonly occurs around the shoulder (rotator cuff tendinitis, biceps tendinitis), elbow (tennis elb ...

which rendered him unable to pitch the entire season at any level. He was released by the M's in December, but returned the following Spring as a non-roster invitee. He earned a spot with the triple A

, and was brought to the majors in late June. On July 9, Thomas pitched 4.2 scoreless innings against the Red Sox to earn his first win of the season. Coupled with his 7-0 record in 1985, Thomas ended his major league career with an eight-game winning streak. Having spent most of his career in the

, Thomas only logged 34 career

at-bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a bat ...

s with 4 hits. His only career

run batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

came off Randy Jones on July 19, 1978. Defensively, Thomas was a perfect fielder in the majors. In 419.1

in 182 appearances, he recorded a 1.000

fielding percentage In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball. It is calculated by the sum of putouts and assists, div ...

, handling 90

total chances In baseball statistics, total chances (TC), also called ''chances offered'', represents the number of plays in which a defensive player has participated. It is the sum of putouts plus assists plus errors. ''Chances accepted'' refers to the total ...

with 36

putout In baseball statistics, a putout (denoted by ''PO'' or ''fly out'' when appropriate) 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 wit ...

s and 54

assist Assist or ASSIST may refer to: Sports Several sports have a statistic known as an "assist", generally relating to action by a player leading to a score by another player on their team: *Assist (basketball), a pass by a player that facilitates a ba ...

Senior Professional Baseball Association

Thomas also pitched for the

St. Lucie Legends The St. Lucie Legends was one of the eight original baseball franchises that played in the Senior Professional Baseball Association in 1989.Sun City Rays The Sun City Rays were a short-lived professional baseball team, based in Sun City, Arizona. The Rays was a member of the Senior Professional Baseball Association in 1990 for the league's second season.Solomon, Burt (1997). ''The Baseball Timelin ...

of the

Senior Professional Baseball Association The Senior Professional Baseball Association, referred to commonly as the ''Senior League'', was a winter baseball league based in Florida for players age 35 and over, with a minimum age of 32 for catchers. The league began play in 1989 and had ei ...

from 1989–1990, until the league folded in the 1990 midseason.

After baseball

Following his playing retirement, Thomas worked as a math teacher at Totem Middle School and Illahee Middle School in the

Federal Way, Washington Federal Way is a city in King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. One of the most recently incorporated cities in the county, its population was 101,030 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Fe ...

School District. He formerly worked at Milwaukie High School/ Milwaukie Academy of the Arts as a campus monitor but retired early in October of 2017. Thomas currently lives in

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

along with his wife, Jane.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Roy 1953 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada Baseball players from Virginia Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Calgary Cannons players Charleston Charlies players Denver Zephyrs players Houston Astros players Iowa Oaks players Major League Baseball pitchers People from Federal Way, Washington People from Quantico, Virginia Reading Phillies players Rocky Mount Phillies players Salinas Spurs players Salt Lake City Gulls players Seattle Mariners players Spartanburg Phillies players Springfield Redbirds players St. Louis Cardinals players St. Lucie Legends players Sun City Rays players Tacoma Tigers players Toledo Mud Hens players Walla Walla Phillies players