Eric Thames Subjected to 2nd Random Drug Test After Hitting MLB-Leading 11th HR

After hitting his major league-leading 11th home run Tuesday, Milwaukee Brewers first baseman Eric Thames submitted his second random drug test since the start of the regular season.

Thames is in the midst of his first MLB season since 2012 after spending three years in South Korea, and he made it clear he has nothing to hide, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy:

"

I went the long way around to come back here. This whole thing is surprising me, as well. I really have no goals for this year. I wasn't trying to break any records or set anything. I just wanted to apply what I learned in Korea to see how it would fare here. I'm shocked at all the results. I'm just here to play ball, and do my best to stay healthy, and stretch as much as I can.

So, yeah, if people keep thinking I'm on stuff, I'll be here every day. I have lots of blood and urine.

"

With one more home run this season, Thames will match his previous MLB career high set in 2011.

After homering against the Chicago Cubs on April 17, two people within the Cubs organization seemed to publicly question the authenticity of Thames' power.

According to Chris Cwik of Yahoo Sports, Cubs pitcher John Lackey said the following after surrendering a longball to Thames: "You watch film on recent stuff and try to figure out a way, you know, to get him out. But I mean, really even the homer hit the other way, I mean, you don't see that happen here very often. That's kinda one of those things that makes you scratch your head."

Cubs pitching coach Chris Bosio also commented on Thames' hot start during an interview on 670 The Score's Mully and Hanley Show (h/t Cwik):

"

Well, the bottom line is [Thames] has hit the ball and we gotta figure out a way to get around [it]. All that other stuff, I'll let other people worry about. But he's doing stuff that I haven't seen done for a long time. ...

... You start thinking about Ken Griffey Jr., Manny Ramirez when he went to the Dodgers, Barry Bonds ... You're talking about some of the greatest players to ever play this game. So, yeah, it's probably a 'head-scratcher' because nobody knows who this guy is. And when he was here before, his body has changed. But, like I said, I'll leave that to everyone else and we're just gonna try to worry about how to pitch him better and get him out.

"

While Bosio questioned changes in Thames' body, the 30-year-old said on ESPN's SportsCenter (h/t Alysha Tsuji of USA Today) on Tuesday that he has focused more on mobility than pure power:

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I learned in Korea with the long stretching routines there, I'm a better player when I'm flexible and mobile. Before I would just be a meathead. I'd be in the gym pressing and squatting and doing a million pull-ups with dumbbells hanging from my waist and so on and so forth, but I couldn't really translate that to the baseball field. I have four surgeries to prove that.

I learned how to stretch, for an hour, an hour-and-a-half, two hours everyday, especially as the season goes on, I just started to learn that I have to be mobile, I have to be able to move to be able to be a good athlete, and it's paid off.

"

Thames developed into a big-time power hitter in South Korea, hitting at least 37 home runs in each of his three seasons there.

He is on pace to hit 89 home runs this season, which would shatter the MLB record of 73 Barry Bonds set in 2001.

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