Thigpen was a three sport star at Aucilla Christian Academy near Monticello, FL. As a member of the baseball team he played for longtime Aucilla coach, Ray Hughes. A pitcher and shortstop in high school, he led the Warriors to the 1981 Class A state championship game.\n', '

He played two years at Seminole Community College, after which he moved on to pitch and play the outfield for Mississippi State University and coach Ron Polk. Among his teammates were future major-leaguers Will Clark, Rafael Palmeiro and Jeff Brantley. Thigpen was part of MSU\'s 1985 College World Series team, recording a .305 batting average and saving seven games during the season.\n', '

Thigpen was selected by the Chicago White Sox in the fourth round of the 1985 amateur draft. He made the major leagues the next August and moved into the White Sox\'s closer role. After two straight 30-save seasons, Thigpen had the best season of his career in 1990, setting the then-major league record of 57 saves. He also maintained a 1.83 ERA and was named to the AL All-Star team. He also blew eight saves that season, including two three-run leads.\n', '

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