Frosty Thomas

Forrest Thomas

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 185 lb.

• Debut May 1, 1905
• Final Game May 6, 1905
• Born May 23, 1881 in Faucett, MO USA
• Died March 18, 1970 in St. Joseph, MO USA

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Biographical Information

Frosty Thomas pitched for the Minneapolis Millers from 1903 to 1907, notching 73 victories. He pitched for the Detroit Tigers in May of 1905, a few months before Ty Cobb broke in with the team in August. Thomas supposedly taught the knuckleball to Eddie Cicotte that season [1]; if so, it probably happened in spring training as the two played on different minor league teams and their brief tenures with the Tigers came four months apart. Cicotte would later popularize the pitch, starting in his rookie season for the 1908 Boston Red Sox.

After his time in Minneapolis, Thomas pitched four years for the Montgomery Senators of the Southern Association, posting a 66-51 record. He finished his professional career with one season for the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League and three seasons for the St. Joseph Drummers of the Western League, including an 18-13 record with 2.82 ERA for the Drummers in 1914.

In 1907 it was said that Thomas was studying medicine, and was an intern in a hospital. In later ballplaying years the press occasionally referred to him as "Dr. Forrest Thomas". However, a 1915 report said that he had been an assistant coach in 1911 while studying medicine at the University of Minnesota, and then when he decided to enroll to study medicine again, Thomas was head baseball coach at the University of Minnesota in 1915.

After his baseball career, Thomas became a practicing physician and served on the staff of St. Joseph, MO State Hospital for more than 25 years [2].