Background
He was born in St. Thomas, Pennsylvania, the youngest of three sons of Jacob and Mae Fox. His father, a carpenter, was also an amateur baseball player; baseball was an interest that the younger Fox quickly acquired.
He was born in St. Thomas, Pennsylvania, the youngest of three sons of Jacob and Mae Fox. His father, a carpenter, was also an amateur baseball player; baseball was an interest that the younger Fox quickly acquired.
Thus, Fox dropped out of high school after completing only three of the four quarters of the tenth grade in order to play professional baseball.
In 1944, after several indifferent years of playing both baseball and soccer, Fox convinced his parents to take him to the nearby spring-training camp of the Philadelphia Athletics. His father hoped to convince him that it was too difficult to break into professional baseball.
But given the wartime shortage of draft-proof young men, the ploy backfired and Connie Mack immediately signed Fox to a contract.
Thus, Fox dropped out of high school after completing only three of the four quarters of the tenth grade in order to play professional baseball. Fox played four years in the minors, except for a brief period of time after he was drafted in 1946, when he served in Korea driving a small landing craft in Ichon Harbor.
Upon his return to the United States he resumed his baseball career in earnest. He also married his childhood friend, Joanne Statler, in June 1948. They had two daughters. Fox began his baseball career playing first base, but was quickly converted to a second baseman.
He played in the minors in 1947 and 1948, ending each season with the Athletics, with whom he played for all of 1949 until he was traded in October to the Chicago White Sox. There, he established himself in fourteen seasons (1950 - 1963) as the premier second baseman of the era. Ironically, at the outset he broke almost every rule while playing the position.
But after some stern lessons from one of his coaches, he perfected the pivot at the bag in making double plays. Fox's career remains an example of how players with relatively modest talents, by a combination of work, enthusiasm, and hustle, can make a significant impact on the sport.
A durable athlete, he played in 798 consecutive games, which was a record for second basemen. He was third on the all-time list for total games played at this position (2, 295). Although possessed of an indifferent throwing arm, he was one of the best fielders in major-league history, winning four Gold Glove awards for his accomplishments.
At the end of the 1992 season he still held the major-league record for the most years leading second basemen in putouts (10) and the most years leading second basemen in total chances (9). He also still held the American League record for career double plays (1, 568) and the American League record (tied with four others) for years leading in double plays (5). Although Fox threw right-handed, he batted left-handed. At the plate he was consistent if not spectacular.
His career batting average was . 288 and he hit over . 300 in six seasons. He holds the American League record for the most seasons with 600 or more at-bats (12). His principal characteristic was accuracy, however, not power. His bat itself, shaped like a milk bottle, not only set him apart from others but enabled him to scatter hits around the field.
He led the American League 13 times for the fewest strikeouts in a season. Fox was a key contributor to the team in 1959, when the White Sox went to the World Series for the first time since the infamous Black Sox scandal of 1919. His accomplishments that year earned him the Most Valuable Player Award. In his career he also played in 15 All-Star games.
Extremely well liked in Chicago, Fox was easily recognizable on the field. He consistently had a red bandana in his pocket and a wad of chewing tobacco in his mouth, a habit that he developed in order to calm his nerves.
Working in the days before superstar salaries, he reportedly earned $22, 500 in 1955, plus product endorsements estimated at $4, 000. In 1964, Fox was traded to the Houston Astros, where he played two seasons before retiring to return home to his native Pennsylvania.
He resumed his baseball service when he was hired late in 1965 as a coach with the Houston Astros. Ted Williams hired him as a coach of the Washington Senators for the 1968 season, and he remained with that club through its 1973 season after it had become the Texas Rangers.
Thereafter, in retirement, Fox owned a bowling alley in Pennsylvania and lived quietly. He died in Baltimore of malignant melanoma, a skin cancer resulting from his many years in the sun.
After his death the Chicago White Sox retired his jersey with its familiar number 2. It was only the second number to be retired by the club in its history to that time.
Fox was one of the best second basemen, and the third most difficult hitter to strike out in Major League Baseball (MLB) history. He played for the Philadelphia Athletics, Chicago White Sox, and Houston Astros, from 1947 through 1965. Fox was an American League (AL) All-Star for twelve seasons, [a] an AL Most Valuable Player (MVP) for one season, and an AL Gold Glove winner for three seasons. He had a . 288 major-league career batting average with 2663 hits, 35 home runs, and 790 runs batted in. He hit . 300 or more six times, and led the AL in singles eight times (seven consecutive seasons) and in fielding average six times as second baseman. In 1959, when the "Go Go" Chicago White Sox won the American League Pennant championship, he hit . 306 with 149 singles and 70 RBI. He coached for the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers after his playing career. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997.
He married his childhood friend, Joanne Statler, in June 1948.
