Frank

Thomas

As a result, Thomas will be playing first base today. On the season, he’s hitting .364 as the first baseman and .236 as the DH.

Thomas is just 5-for-39 in his last 10 games. If he keeps struggling, Manuel will have to put him back at first base whether he wants to or not.

White Sox doctors examined “The Big Hurt” yesterday and believe that Thomas will not require surgery and that he should be healthy enough to play games during spring training next season. Thomas and the Sox have a series of options that will likely be exercised in a way where Thomas will be back in Chicago next year whether the White Sox want him there or not.

Thomas underwent surgery on a bone in his left ankle Oct. 6 and is still in a cast. “Frank is a longshot,” Guillen said. “It’s not easy when you miss so many days. The problem is the wait-and-see. To tell you the truth, I don’t know if I can count on Frank to be in the lineup.”

''We won’t gauge where he is until he shows up,’' Williams said. ''A lot can happen in two weeks, and it has been two weeks since his last [rehabilitation] report.’' Williams said the last report put Thomas ''on schedule for mid-March’’ as he recovers from foot surgery.

Manager Jerry Manuel said he’s just trying to get Brian Daubach some at-bats. Thomas is struggling with a .218 average, but he leads the AL in walks with 17, and Manuel says he won’t remove Thomas from the No. 3 spot in the order.

Before taking a seat, Thomas was just 2-for-13 this spring.

“It was more like a pulled muscle,” Thomas said. “I didn’t have any strength in (the shoulder) for the last four or five days. A couple of days ago, I couldn’t swing at all, but it’s fine now.” Because of the soreness, Thomas probably will get all his time at DH for at least the first week or two.

Thomas said he injured the shoulder trying to throw over the top instead of his normal sidearm.

Thomas apparently did too much throwing last week. He’s expected back today.