With Jim Thome's impending induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame, many have predictably taken the time to look back on what was an amazing career, especially his 612 home runs (eighth best all-time).
What makes Thome's statistics even more impressive is the fact that he was never once under suspicion of using performance-enhancing drugs, even though other sluggers of his era will never be able to say the same.
During a media event Friday to look back at his career with the Indians, Thome said using PEDs "was never a thought" in his mind.
"I was taught to play the game the right way, and the most prideful thing that I can say is that I did it the right way," he said. "At the end of the day, when you look in the mirror, you look in the mirror and you go, 'You did it the right way,' and...you're damn proud of how you did it."
PHOTOS: Cleveland Indians great Jim Thome elected to National Baseball Hall of Fame
Thome's strong stance against steroids was not surprising, and elicited a standing ovation from the crowd assembled at the Idea Center at Playhouse Square. His election to baseball's shrine comes at a somewhat controversial time for the museum, when otherwise deserving players such as Barry Bonds and even Thome's former teammate Manny Ramirez find themselves not being voted into the Hall of Fame due to past ties to drug use.
When asked if he thought those players deserved enshrinement, however, Thome chose not to judge.
"To comment on other players is not in my position," he said. "All I can do is tell you what I did and my thoughts on how I did it, and I feel very strongly about that."
Thome, the Tribe's all-time home run leader with 337, will be inducted in July in Cooperstown, the first player to be represented as a Cleveland Indian since Larry Doby in 1998.