Steve Thobe

Steven Michael Thobe

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 7", Weight 237 lb.

• Schools California State University, Sacramento, Rancho Santiago College

• Born May 26, 1972 in Akron, OH USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Infielder Steve Thobe peaked at AAA. His brothers J.J. Thobe and Tom Thobe both pitched in the majors; all three stood at least 6' 6". He and J.J. were teammates at Rancho Santiago College.

Thobe hit .346 with 14 home runs for Sacramento State in 1994. The Pittsburgh Pirates picked him in the 18th round of the 1994 amateur draft. Assigned to the Welland Pirates, he struggled that summer at .192/.261/.285 with one homer in 151 AB. He backed up at both 1B and 3B. In 1995, he improved his batting line significantly, to .299/.372/.416 for the Augusta Greenjackets. He was .001 shy of Adrian Brown for the team lead in average. He played mainly first base, where he was one of two Augusta players to top 60 games.

In 1996, Steve batted only .228/.297/.362 for the Lynchburg Hillcats while fielding .990 at first (he also caught 27 games, with 18 passed balls and 42 steals allowed in 46 tries). Had he qualified, he would have led Carolina League first basemen in fielding percentage. Despite his limited action at catcher, he nearly led the league's backstops in passed balls, just two behind Justin Towle.

Thobe hit a career-high 12 home runs between three stops in 1997, playing for Lynchburg (4 for 27, 2B, 10 K, BB), the Carolina Mudcats (.293/.352/.464 in 53 G) and Calgary Cannons (.255/.361/.480 in 34 G). He was a backup corner infielder at each stop. In '98, Steve played for Carolina (.156/.257/.240 in 52 G) and the Nashville Sounds (0 for 11), struggling as a utility player. Pittsburgh did not keep him around for 1999 and he signed with the independent Albany-Colonie Diamond Dogs, where his 1998 woes continued - 5 for 30, 2 2B, HR, 9 BB, 10 K, 10 E in 9 G at 3B.

Overall, the big infielder hit .237/.315/.367 with 33 home runs in 1,464 minor league plate appearances over 406 games. He allowed one run in 3 2/3 innings as a pitcher and fielded .985 at 1B and .875 at 3B.

Sources include 1995-1999 Baseball Almanacs