(Chicago, IL) – Seasoned baseball fans will remember The Big Hurt, Frank Thomas.

It is amazing how fast time flies and Frank Thomas, not long ago one of the heavy hitters in baseball, is now 43. So what do you do in your post-baseball years if you are Thomas?

Make beer. Or at least have it made it for you.

The Chicago Tribune reported a couple weeks back:

The Big Hurt’s new product — a namesake lager — is expected to arrive in Chicago-area bars and liquor stores in August. And at 7 percent alcohol, Big Hurt Beer — like its bat-wielding inspiration — also promises to be a hard-hitting presence in the city.

“I’m very picky when it comes to beer,” said Thomas, who described the brew as light and crisp. “It’s a very good-tasting beer.”

Label approval (a keg collar) came in this week revealing that Big Hurt Beer will be brewed at Minhas Craft Brewery in Monroe, Wisconsin.

The company is surprisingly mum on details around the beers hitting shelves given we are coming up on late August. Updates will be posted to Facebook, Twitter and the company’s website.

Thomas hit 521 home runs in his career and won back-to-back MVP awards. There has been some debate as to whether he merits being a first-ballot hall of famer. He is eligible beginning in 2014.

(Below: thanks to tonythemisfit for making this here photo of Frank Thomas available through Creative Commons)