MLB Alumni: Scott Thorman
Scott Thorman, a left-handed power-hitter who spent most of his time in the outfield and first-base, was one of the first players ever drafted out of the Team Ontario program and the only player to ever be selected in the first-round.
The Cambridge native graduated from Team Ontario in June of 2000 when the Atlanta Braves called his name with the 30th overall selection, one pick behind Adam Wainwright. At just 18-years-old, Thorman joined the Braves organization that summer, playing 29 games with in rookie ball where he batted .227 with an on-base percentage of .330.
After sitting out the 2001 season due to injury, he came back with a vengeance, slashing .294/.367./.489 with 16 home runs over 127 games in what was his first full year of pro baseball.
Ultimately, that season earned him a promotion to High-A Myrtle Beach for the 2003 season and by 2005 he was playing with the Braves Triple-A club in Richmond.
After 640 minor league games, Thorman finally got the call to the big leagues on June 18th, 2006 and the 24-year-old was joining a loaded Braves roster that included John Smoltz, Chipper Jones, Andruw Jones, Brian McCann and another fellow Canadian, Pete Orr.
His first hit came in his second career game while taking on his hometown Toronto Blue Jays at Turner Field. Thorman's MLB career was spent entirely with the Atlanta Braves where he appeared in 175 games between 2006 and 2007 while accumulating 92 hits, 16 home runs and 50 RBI's.
Following his game in the majors, Thorman spent four more seasons at the Triple-A level between the Texas Rangers, Kansas City Royals and Detroit Tigers organizations. He played well over 1,000 games in the minor leagues, slashing .272/.332/.454 while launching 154 home runs.
Additionally, he appeared in two World Baseball Classics, 2006 and 2009, for Team Canada.
Thorman set the tone for the Team Ontario throughout the 2000s as we had well over two dozen players follow in his footsteps as MLB draft picks.
Offensively he's one of the most talented players to ever come through the Team Ontario doors and our young hitters could learn a lot from Thorman and how he went about his business throughout his career.