Gary Thomasson
Encyclopedia
Gary Leah Thomasson is a former outfielder
in Major League Baseball
who played from 1972-1980.
He played in 1981-1982 for the Yomiuri Giants
in Japanese Nippon Pro Baseball. Signed with great fanfare and to the biggest contract ever given to a player in the Nippon league, Thomasson was a disappointment in his two years in Japan
, coming close to setting the league strikeout record and then blowing out his knee to end his career.
1994 science-fiction novel Virtual Light
. The novel, set in 2006, quotes the concept of "Thomasson" which is a term coined by artist Genpei Akasegawa to describe futile and senseless monuments that still yield a certain artistical appeal.
Outfielder
Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
who played from 1972-1980.
He played in 1981-1982 for the Yomiuri Giants
Yomiuri Giants
The are a professional baseball team based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan. The team competes in the Central League in Nippon Professional Baseball, the top level of professional play in Japan. They play their home games in the Tokyo Dome, opened in 1988. The English-language press occasionally calls the...
in Japanese Nippon Pro Baseball. Signed with great fanfare and to the biggest contract ever given to a player in the Nippon league, Thomasson was a disappointment in his two years in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, coming close to setting the league strikeout record and then blowing out his knee to end his career.
Cultural references
Thomasson's name is featured prominently in William Gibson'sWilliam Gibson
William Gibson is an American-Canadian science fiction author.William Gibson may also refer to:-Association football:*Will Gibson , Scottish footballer...
1994 science-fiction novel Virtual Light
Virtual Light
Virtual Light is the first book in William Gibson's Bridge trilogy. Virtual Light is a science-fiction novel set in a postmodern, dystopian, cyberpunk future. The term 'Virtual Light' was coined by scientist Stephen Beck to describe a form of instrumentation that produces optical sensations...
. The novel, set in 2006, quotes the concept of "Thomasson" which is a term coined by artist Genpei Akasegawa to describe futile and senseless monuments that still yield a certain artistical appeal.