| Tyler Thomas | |
| Position: | Pitcher |
| Team: | Free agent |
| Bats: | Right |
| Throws: | Left |
| Birth Date: | 22 December 1995 |
| Birth Place: | San Diego, California |
Ricky Tyler Thomas (born December 22, 1995) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent.
Thomas attended Mira Mesa Senior High School in San Diego.[1] He enrolled at California State University, Fresno, and played college baseball for the Fresno State Bulldogs.[2] [3]
The Chicago Cubs selected Thomas in the seventh round of the 2017 MLB draft and he signed, receiving a $175,000 bonus.[4]
Thomas made his professional debut in 2017 with the Low–A Eugene Emeralds where he was 1–0 with a 2.33 ERA in 19.1 relief innings pitched. He began 2018 with the Single–A South Bend Cubs.
On July 19, 2018, the Cubs traded Thomas to the Texas Rangers in exchange for Jesse Chavez.[5] The Rangers assigned him to the Single–A Hickory Crawdads and promoted him to the High–A Down East Wood Ducks in August. In 22 games (twenty starts) between South Bend, Hickory, and the Wood Ducks, Thomas compiled a 3–9 record with a 3.00 ERA over 105 innings.[6] Thomas was assigned back to Down East for the 2019 season,[7] going 0–2 with a 5.19 ERA over just innings due to a non-disclosed injury. Thomas did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[8] In 2021, Thomas split the season pitching for the Hickory Crawdads, Double–A Frisco RoughRiders, and Triple–A Round Rock Express, going 3–3 with a 3.66 ERA. In 2022, Thomas posted a 2–1 record with a 6.14 ERA between Frisco and Round Rock, before he was released on August 16, 2022.
On April 12, 2023, Thomas signed with the Gastonia Honey Hunters of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball.[9] He made 15 appearances for Gastonia, registering a pristine 0.90 ERA with 34 strikeouts and 1 save in 20.0 innings pitched.
On June 6, 2023, Thomas signed a minor league contract with the New York Mets organization.[10] Thomas appeared in 24 games between Double-A Binghamton Rumble Ponies and Triple-A Syracuse Mets where he compiled a 2-0 record and 2.86 ERA with 41 strikeouts in 34.2 innings pitched.
On December 6, 2023, the Atlanta Braves selected Thomas in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft.[11] Two days later, the Braves traded Thomas and Evan White to the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for David Fletcher and Max Stassi.[12] He appeared in 31 games (2 starts) for the Triple–A Salt Lake Bees, compiling a 1-2 record and 5.44 ERA with 45 strikeouts in innings pitched. On July 31, 2024, Thomas was released by the Angels organization.[13]