Thornton grew up in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, in a family of athletes, and graduated from Phoenixville Area High School. In 1967, a week before his 18th birthday, the Philadelphia Phillies signed Thornton as an amateur free agent. He played Minor League Baseball in the Phillies organization from 1967 through 1972. In 1972, the Phillies traded Thornton to the Atlanta Braves, who traded him to the Chicago Cubs the following year.\n', '

Thornton made his major-league debut with the Cubs on July 28, 1973, as a pinch hitter. He collected his first hit on August 3, in a win over the Montreal Expos. He was named to the 1974 All-Rookie Team as a first baseman by Baseball Digest. Thornton had one of his best seasons in 1975; although his 18 home runs were only the seventh-best season total of his career, he hit .293 with a .428 on-base percentage and a slugging percentage of .516. It was the first of six seasons during his career in which Thornton walked more than he struck out. Thornton played for the Cubs until May 1976, appearing in 271 games with a batting average of .267 with 30 home runs and 122 RBIs.\n', '

Thornton was traded to Montreal on May 17, 1976, for Larry Biittner and Steve Renko. He played in 69 games for Montreal through the end of the season. Overall for 1976, in which he battled injuries, Thornton hit .194 with 11 home runs and 38 RBIs. On December 10, the Expos traded Thornton to the Cleveland Indians for pitcher Jackie Brown. The trade would prove to be one of the most lopsided deals of the 1970s, as Brown would only pitch one more year in the majors.\n', '

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