Fox News accidentally reported during an in memorium segment on Friday that Hall of Fame baseball player Frank Thomas died this year.
The 55-year-old Thomas took to social media to assure fans that he was still very much alive.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, I’m very sorry my ex-employer Fox would be this irresponsible on National TV this morning,” Thomas wrote on social media.
“Yes I’m alive and doing well,” he wrote. “This blows my mind also.”
Fox News later corrected their report and explained that they had confused Thomas with a different MLB player of the same name who had played for the Pittsburgh Pirates and died in January at the age of 93.
Known as “The Big Hurt,” Thomas spent most of his career crushing home runs for the Chicago White Sox. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2014.
Take a look at the mistaken segment, and Thomas’ humorous response.
@whitesox let Frank Thomas know he’s dead. pic.twitter.com/b0l1VmXYU0
— Mystical Farm (@mysticalfarm) December 29, 2023
Ladies and Gentlemen I’m very sorry my ex employer Fox would be this irresponsible on National TV this morning. Yes I’m alive and doing well. This blows my mind also. pic.twitter.com/FWGlVwOIFS
— Frank Thomas (@TheBigHurt_35) December 29, 2023
The other Thomas who passed away in January was a three-time All-Star with his hometown Pittsburgh Pirates who later became the top hitter on the expansion New York Mets.
Thomas played 16 seasons in the major leagues from 1951-66, the first eight for Pittsburgh, where he was born. He batted .266 overall with 286 home runs and 962 RBIs.
Here he is chatting with Willie Mays at a June, 1958 baseball game —
The Horn editorial team