"Those guys are like my brothers," Thome said. "I've sent them texts and e-mails and all that all year long. That's kind of what we do is have fun. One thing about the game is you always stay in touch with your guys, and I think everybody knows my two years here were very, very special. They gave me an opportunity to be honest, when not many teams were calling at that time. I thank them for that, I appreciate that, and same thing for the fans as well." By Jordan Garretson / MLB.com