Milwaukee’s Best, Part 3: The 50 Best To Play For Braves, Brewers: 30-21
By Phil Watson
Gorman Thomas during Game 4 of the 1982 World Series (Image capture from youtube.com)
22. Gorman Thomas, CF
Brewers 1973-76, 1978-83, 1986
Gorman Thomas was one of the original members of the Milwaukee Brewers organization after being the 21st overall pick in the 1969 amateur draft out of Charleston Southern University by the Brewers’ predecessors, the Seattle Pilots.
Thomas debuted in the majors in April 1973 and bounced back and forth between the majors and minors for the next five years—displaying great power and an inability to make consistent contact.
He finally stuck for good in 1978 as the Brewers’ center fielder and twice led the American League in home runs, slugging 45 in 1979 and 39 in 1982. He was an All-Star in the strike-shortened 1981 campaign and twice finished in the top 10 in the MVP race.
Thomas struggled in postseason play, going 2-for-18 in the 1981 Division Series loss to the New York Yankees, 1-for-15 in the American League Championship Series against the California Angels in 1982 and 3-for-26 in the 1982 World Series loss to the St. Louis Cardinals.
Thomas was in the top 10 in slugging in 1978, 1979 and 1981, finished ninth in runs scored in 1982 and cracked the top five in homers five straight years (1978-82). He was in the top 10 in RBI four straight seasons, from 1979-82.
In June 1983, Thomas was traded along with right-hander Ernie Camacho and left-hander Jamie Easterly to the Cleveland Indians for center fielder Rick Manning and lefty Rick Waits.
After being traded to the Seattle Mariners in December 1983, Thomas eventually returned to Milwaukee in July 1986 after he was released by Seattle.
Thomas was released in October 1986 and remains one of the most popular former Brewers around.
Here are Thomas’ statistics from his 11 seasons with the Brewers:
| Year | Age | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | OPS+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | 22 | 59 | 172 | 155 | 16 | 29 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 5 | 5 | 14 | 61 | .187 | .254 | .284 | .538 | 54 |
| 1974 | 23 | 17 | 57 | 46 | 10 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 15 | .261 | .357 | .478 | .835 | 140 |
| 1975 | 24 | 121 | 280 | 240 | 34 | 43 | 12 | 2 | 10 | 28 | 4 | 2 | 31 | 84 | .179 | .268 | .371 | .639 | 80 |
| 1976 | 25 | 99 | 267 | 227 | 27 | 45 | 9 | 2 | 8 | 36 | 2 | 3 | 31 | 67 | .198 | .294 | .361 | .655 | 93 |
| 1978 | 27 | 137 | 536 | 452 | 70 | 111 | 24 | 1 | 32 | 86 | 3 | 4 | 73 | 133 | .246 | .351 | .515 | .866 | 142 |
| 1979 | 28 | 156 | 668 | 557 | 97 | 136 | 29 | 0 | 45 | 123 | 1 | 5 | 98 | 175 | .244 | .356 | .539 | .895 | 138 |
| 1980 | 29 | 162 | 697 | 628 | 78 | 150 | 26 | 3 | 38 | 105 | 8 | 5 | 58 | 170 | .239 | .303 | .471 | .774 | 112 |
| 1981 ★ | 30 | 103 | 420 | 363 | 54 | 94 | 22 | 0 | 21 | 65 | 4 | 5 | 50 | 85 | .259 | .348 | .493 | .841 | 146 |
| 1982 | 31 | 158 | 666 | 567 | 96 | 139 | 29 | 1 | 39 | 112 | 3 | 7 | 84 | 143 | .245 | .343 | .506 | .850 | 137 |
| 1983 | 32 | 46 | 192 | 164 | 21 | 30 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 18 | 2 | 1 | 23 | 50 | .183 | .284 | .323 | .607 | 73 |
| 1986 | 35 | 44 | 178 | 145 | 21 | 26 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 31 | 50 | .179 | .324 | .345 | .669 | 81 |
| TOTALS | 1102 | 4133 | 3544 | 524 | 815 | 172 | 12 | 208 | 605 | 38 | 39 | 501 | 1033 | .230 | .325 | .461 | .786 | 119 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 3/19/2015.
Next: 21. Developed Into A Star In Milwaukee