Tommy Thompson is entering his second season as the manager of the Frederick Keys. Thompson was drafted in the 27th-round of the 1977 draft by the Atlanta Braves. In 1985, he joined the Chicago White Sox organization. Thompson began his coaching career as a player/coach at Class AA Birmingham in 1988. He went on to manage the Utica Blue Sox of the New York-Penn league in 1990, and the South Bend Silver Hawks of the Midwest League in 1991.

In 1992, Thompson was named the Chicago White Sox catching coordinator. He worked that position for 14 seasons, with his last resulting in the first White Sox World Series championship since 1917.

The Baltimore Orioles hired Thompson to manage the Keys in 2007. In his first season, he led the Keys to their third Carolina League Championship. Thompson is looking forward to 2008. “I am very excited about returning to Frederick especially with the players who are coming here,” Thompson said. “We will have a special group of players who will play at the highest level down the road.”