His duties as a baseball commentator for FOX and FOX Sports 1 are extensive. He owns Big Hurt Brewhouse in Berwyn, Illinois, and has been a first-ballot Hall of Famer since 2014. He was hired by the White Sox after quitting the previous White Sox position when his broadcast responsibilities grew. Since then, he has become a fixture on the Chicago sports scene. He played second base for the White Sox from 1989 to 1995 and had an eight-year career with the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). In 2001, he was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Thomas's wife, Nancy, died in a car accident in 1994. A year later, he married former Chicago Cubs pitcher Amy Jones. They have two children together: a daughter named Alexis and a son named Henry. After leaving the White Sox, Thomas worked as a color analyst for the team's radio network before becoming the manager of the Tampa Bay Rays (2005-06) and the Detroit Tigers (2007). He also managed the Chicago White Sox from 2009 to 2011, but was fired after making the playoffs only once during that period. In 2012, he joined FOX Sports as a baseball analyst and part-time coach for their MLB coverage. In October 2014, it was announced that Thomas would be one of five candidates for the vacant Boston Red Sox manager's job.