December 12, 200421 yr From the Southtown, looks like Gene called it; ANAHEIM, Calif. — White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen is preparing for the worst when it comes to the health of designated hitter/first baseman Frank Thomas. Thomas was shut down for the 2004 season on July 11 with tendinitis in his left ankle and had surgery to repair a bone in the ankle on Oct. 6. While Sox brass figures Thomas will be back during spring training, Guillen thinks Thomas could miss two months of the 2005 season and that he may not return until June. "That's my opinion," Guillen said Saturday at the baseball winter meetings. "I don't know anything about medical situations, but to me, Frank still has the cast on and he won't be able to hit for awhile. It's going to be a long time to rehab. "I need Frank. Hopefully, he will be ready for spring training. But the way that injury is going ... "I'm not (Sox trainer Herm Schneider), I'm not Frank Thomas and I'm not the doctor," Guillen added. "But that's what I assume. It's a gut feeling. It's a tough injury to heal. I'm trying to prepare it in my mind for myself. And I have to prepare to have the team without Frank. We have to be ready to play without him. Hopefully, he will show up early and we will welcome him to the lineup." Sox general manager Kenny Williams doubts it will take until June for Thomas to return. "I think more than anything, he (Guillen) is preparing for a worst-case scenario that includes a setback of some sort," Williams said. "But nothing has changed in terms of his prognosis. We expect him to be ready in spring training at some point. But should there be some sort of setback, one of the things you have to be mindful of is that you don't want anything to jump up and bite us. We have to prepare for (that possibility)." Come Monday, the Sox could have a better idea of what to expect. Thomas is scheduled for a CAT scan, which could determine whether he needs to keep the cast on for a while longer or whether he can start wearing an immobilizing boot. According to Schneider, if Thomas wears the boot, he can begin light rehab work. There have been rumors swirling during the winter meetings that Sox first baseman Paul Konerko could be trade bait. A prolonged absence by Thomas, who is slated to make $8 million in 2005, would leave the Sox short-handed at first base — not to mention in the power department — if Konerko is dealt. "There are a lot of rumors about trading Paul," Guillen said. "When you come to these meetings, there will be a lot of talk and rumors and different things. But right now, we don't know. We have him on the team. And we have Carl Everett, who could be used as a DH." When healthy, Thomas is capable of big offensive numbers. Last season, he hit .271 with 18 home runs and 49 RBI in just 74 games. Guillen, who will be entering his second season as Sox manager, is a former teammate of Thomas' and hopes the slugger returns quickly. "We scored a lot of runs, but we weren't consistent with it," said Guillen, who could be verbalizing doubts about Thomas as a motivational ploy. "Having Frank in the middle of the lineup ... he's one of the best hitters who ever played. We were stronger when he was in there. "Frank was great with me when I got the job. He came to camp with a good attitude. He did everything we asked him to do. He was a great teammate and good in the clubhouse."
December 12, 200421 yr Frank is a big human and lower body stuff is tough especially at his age. OMG, I just said "at his age" for a guy younger than me One thing Frank has going for him is huis workout ethic. I cannot remember a time in his career that he reported to camp out of shape.
December 12, 200421 yr Frank is a big human and lower body stuff is tough especially at his age. OMG, I just said "at his age" for a guy younger than me One thing Frank has going for him is huis workout ethic. I cannot remember a time in his career that he reported to camp out of shape. Yeah, Frank works his ass off, that has never been in doubt. The problem is, he can't do anything about this. He is a 270ish pound man, with foot/ankle problems. Ask Shaq, you can't do anything about those kind of injuries except letting them heal.
December 12, 200421 yr Yeah, Frank works his ass off, that has never been in doubt. The problem is, he can't do anything about this. He is a 270ish pound man, with foot/ankle problems. Ask Shaq, you can't do anything about those kind of injuries except letting them heal. I heard this little company in San Francisco has an ointment you can rub on . . .
December 12, 200421 yr I heard this little company in San Francisco has an ointment you can rub on . . . Or this guy in Vienna who can fix him right up...
December 12, 200421 yr Or this guy in Vienna who can fix him right up... Actually I wonder if the Doctor who treated golfer Jose Maria Olazabal, Dr. Hans-Wilhem Muller-Wolfhart, has any ideas? Olazabal went from career ending, misdiagnosed ailment, to walking in a few weeks. I think he was also in Vienna.
December 12, 200421 yr I still feel he's going to be back sooner, June just seems like it's going to be the worst case scenario.
December 12, 200421 yr The Big Hurt was exceptional in his team play last season. The man is hall-of-fame bound and we need his bat in the line up. However, we need Paul Konerko and Carlos Lee too. If we trade somebody I think we should trade Carl Everett, if someone would take him other then KW, and keep the other guys. I am worried about all this talk about trading sluggers for pitchers. Too may arm troubles to worry about and we need to be careful about what we wish for. If we trade it needs to be to fill a hole without making another one.
December 12, 200421 yr We'll know more tomorrow after he has his MRI. I didn't know that Ozzie was also a doctor of medicine specializing in foot problems. He must be trying to "Ozzie factor" that bone to heal quicker?
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