Jimmie Foxx

Infobox MLB retired
name=Jimmie Foxx


position=First baseman
bats=Right
throws=Right
birthdate=birth date|1907|10|22|mf=y
city-state|Sudlersville|Maryland
deathdate=death date and age|1967|7|21|1907|10|22
city-state|Miami|Florida
debutdate=May 1
debutyear=by|1925
debutteam=Philadelphia Athletics
finaldate=September 23
finalyear=by|1945
finalteam=Philadelphia Phillies
stat1label=Batting average
stat1value=.325
stat2label=Home runs
stat2value=534
stat3label=Runs batted in
stat3value=1,922
teams=
* Philadelphia Athletics (by|1925-by|1935)
* Boston Red Sox (by|1936-by|1942)
* Chicago Cubs (by|1942, by|1944)
* Philadelphia Phillies (by|1945)
highlights=
* 9x All-Star selection (1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1941)
* 2x World Series champion (1929, 1930)
* 3x AL MVP (by|1932, 1933, 1938)
hofdate=by|1951
hofdate=by|1951
hofvote=79.2% (first ballot)

James Emory "Jimmie" Foxx (October 22 by|1907-July 21 by|1967) (nicknamed Double X and The Beast) was an American first baseman and noted power hitter in Major League Baseball. Foxx was the second major league player to hit 500 career home runs, and at age 32 years 336 days, is the second youngest ever to reach that mark, behind only Alex Rodriguez.

Although his name appears both as Jimmy and Jimmie in newspaper accounts, box scores, baseball cards, and other records, Foxx generally signed it "Jimmie."Fact|date=May 2008

Biography

Born in city-state|Sudlersville|Maryland, Foxx played baseball in high school and dropped out to join a minor league team managed by former Philadelphia Athletics great Frank "Home Run" Baker. Foxx had hoped to pitch or play third base, but since the team was short on catchers, Foxx moved behind the plate. He immediately drew interest from the Athletics and New York Yankees. Foxx signed with the A's and made his major league debut in by|1925 at age 17.

Major league career

Philadelphia Athletics

The A's catching duties were already filled by future Hall of Famer Mickey Cochrane, so by by|1927, Foxx was splitting time between catching, first base, and the outfield. In by|1929, installed as the A's regular first baseman, Foxx had a breakthrough year, batting .354 and hitting 33 home runs. In by|1932, Foxx hit 58 home runs. He followed up in by|1933 by winning the Triple Crown with a batting average of .356, 163 RBIs, and 48 home runs. He won back-to-back MVP honors in 1932 and 1933.

Foxx was one of the three or four most feared sluggers of his era. The great Yankee pitcher Lefty Gomez once said of him, "He has muscles in his hair." In by|1937, Foxx hit a ball into the third deck of the left-field stands at Yankee Stadium in New York, a very rare feat because of the distance and the angle of the stands. Gomez was the pitcher who gave it up, and when asked how far it went, he said, "I don't know, but I do know it took somebody 45 minutes to go up there and get it back."

When the Great Depression fully hit in the early 1930s, A's owner Connie Mack was unable to pay the salaries of his highly paid stars and was obliged to sell off a number of them. In by|1936, Mack sold Foxx's contract to the Boston Red Sox for $150,000 following a contract dispute.

Boston Red Sox

Foxx played six years for Boston, including a spectacular by|1938 season in which he hit 50 home runs, drove in 175 runs, batted .349, won his third MVP award, and narrowly missed winning the Triple Crown. On June 16, 1938, he set an American League record when he walked six times in a game. In by|1939 he hit .360, his second all-time best season batting average. His 50 home runs would remain the single-season record for the Red Sox until David Ortiz hit 54 in by|2006.

Chicago Cubs & Philadelphia Phillies

Foxx's skills diminished significantly after by|1941. Some sources attribute this to a drinking problem, while others attribute it to a sinus condition. He split the by|1942 season between the Red Sox and Chicago Cubs, playing mostly a reserve role. He sat out the by|1943 season and appeared only in 15 games in by|1944, mostly as a pinch hitter.

He wound up his career with the Philadelphia Phillies in by|1945, filling in at first and third, pinch hitting, and even pitching nine games, compiling a surprising 1-0 record and 1.59 ERA over 22.2 innings. Interestingly, the man who was so often called the right-handed Babe Ruth throughout his career was the opposite of Ruth in this regard as well. Ruth began his big-league career as a pitcher; Foxx ended his big-league career as one.

Foxx finished his twenty year career with 534 home runs, 1922 runs batted in, and a .325 batting average. His twelve consecutive seasons with 30 or more home runs was a major league record until it was broken by Barry Bonds in by|2004. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in by|1951; his plaque shows Foxx wearing a Red Sox cap. At the end of his career, his 534 home runs placed him second only to Ruth on the all-time list, and first among right-handed hitters. He retained these positions until Willie Mays passed Foxx for second place in by|1966.

Post-baseball career

A series of bad investments left Foxx broke by by|1958. He worked as a minor league manager and coach after his playing days ended, including managing the Fort Wayne Daisies of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League for one season in by|1952. He took them to the playoffs where they lost in the first round 2 games to 1 against the Rockford Peaches. Foxx did not return for the by|1953 season. Tom Hanks' character Jimmy Dugan in the movie "A League of Their Own" was largely based on Foxx and Hack Wilson, although the producers took a number of liberties in creating the role.

Foxx served as head coach for the University of Miami baseball team for two seasons, going 9-8 in by|1956 and 11-12 in by|1957.

Death

Foxx died at age 59 in city-state|Miami|Florida, apparently by choking to death on a bone. He is buried at Flagler Memorial Park in Miami. A statue of Foxx was erected in his hometown on October 25, by|1997. In by|1999, he ranked number 15 on "The Sporting News"' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, and was a nominee for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.

Cultural references

Foxx is mentioned in the poem "Lineup for Yesterday" by Ogden Nash:

Quote box2 |width= 18em |border= 4px |align= center |bgcolor= #FAF0E6 |halign= center | title="Lineup for Yesterday"|quote="X is the first" "Of two x's in Foxx" "Who was right behind Ruth" "With his powerful soxx."
source= — "Ogden Nash", "Sport" magazine (January 1949) [cite web|title=Baseball Almanac|url=http://www.baseball-almanac.com/poetry/po_line.shtml|accessdate=2008-01-23 ]

ee also

* List of Major League Baseball Home Run Records
* 500 home run club
* 50 home run club
* List of Major League Baseball RBI Records
* List of MLB individual streaks
* Top 500 home run hitters of all time
* Triple Crown
* List of Major League Baseball home run champions
* List of Major League Baseball batting champions
* List of Major League Baseball RBI champions
* Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame

Notes and references

External links

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* [http://bioproj.sabr.org/bioproj.cfm?a=v&v=l&pid=4658&bid=229 Biography at The Baseball Biography Project]

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