From Where I Sit...

Thanks Mr. Thome.

This blog will be about sports today. More importantly a good sport story. On Sunday September 16th Jim Thome hit his 500th career home run.

HEY MARK, ALL ATHLETES ARE ON DRUGS, WHO CARES!
I hate hecklers, (especially blog hecklers).
Calm down buddy and listen.

Jim Thome is the anti-superstar. He is the kind of athlete they should make a movie about. Jim Thome is, dare I say, a good role model.

ATHLETES MAKE TERRIBLE ROLE MODELS.
Stop shouting or I'll clear out this blog and put up a search engine.

Jim Thome has played 17 seasons and has never had an ill word written about him. He respects the game that has paid him nearly $100 million. He spends his money by putting all his nieces and nephews through college and donating time and money to children's hospitals. His peers voted him the nicest player in the league. He also offered to play for the Chicago Cubs at a rate well below his market value because that was his team as a kid growing up in Peoria, Illinois. The Cubs passed on the offer.

When asked what he would do with the 500th home run ball, he said his dad and him would take a trip and drive the ball to the Hall of Fame themselves. How cool is that?

STOP IT! I'M GONNA CRY.

I just want people to know that there are still athletes in this world that kids can look up to. I doubt Jim Thome will read this blog, but if he does I just want to say, Thank You. Not just for hitting home runs, but for being the kind of player I can tell my son about. I had chills when my son was imitating Jim Thome's 500th home run trot. Odds are my son will never play major league baseball. I am OK with that as long as he tries to be like Jim Thome in other areas of his life. That would be the best home run.