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Jimmie Foxx Stats & Facts

Jimmie Foxx

Positions: First Baseman, Third Baseman and Catcher
Bats: Right  •  Throws: Right
6-0, 195lb (183cm, 88kg)
Born: October 22, 1907 in Sudlersville, MD
Died: July 21, 1967 in Miami, FL
Buried: Flagler Memorial Park, Miami, FL
High School: Sudlersville HS (Sudlersville, MD)
Debut: May 1, 1925 (6,193rd in major league history)
vs. WSH 1 AB, 1 H, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB
Last Game: September 23, 1945
vs. BRO 3 AB, 1 H, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 0 SB
Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 1951. (Voted by BBWAA on 179/226 ballots)
View Jimmie Foxx’s Page at the Baseball Hall of Fame (plaque, photos, videos).
Full Name: James Emory Foxx
Nicknames: Beast or Double X
View Player Info from the B-R Bullpen
View Player Bio from the SABR BioProject

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Notable Events and Chronology for Jimmie Foxx Career

Biography Jimmie Foxx

One of the most prolific sluggers in baseball history, Jimmie Foxx rivaled Lou Gehrig throughout much of the 1930s as the sport’s most dominant hitter.  Playing first for the Philadelphia Athletics, and then for the Boston Red Sox, Foxx captured three Most Valuable Player Awards during the decade and became the first man ever to hit more than 50 home runs for two different teams.  Often referred to as “the righthanded Babe Ruth,” Foxx helped lead the Athletics to three straight American League pennants and two world championships between 1929 and 1931. 

Biography


Born in Sudlersville, Maryland on October 22, 1907, James Emory Foxx developed his tremendous upper-body strength by doing chores on his father’s farm.  After excelling in both baseball and track and field in high school, Foxx joined Easton of the Eastern Shore League, where he became former major league third baseman Frank “Home Run” Baker’s protege.  Baker recommended Foxx to his former manager Connie Mack shortly thereafter, and Mack signed the 17-year-old catcher to a contract with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1925.

Foxx garnered very little playing time his first three seasons, spending most of his time sitting next to Mack on the Philadelphia bench.  Occasionally playing either first or third base, but serving primarily as backup to starting catcher Mickey Cochrane, Foxx appeared in a total of only 97 games between 1925 and 1927.  However, splitting his time between first and third base, Foxx finally earned a spot in Philadelphia’s starting lineup in 1928.  Playing in 118 games, the 20-year-old Foxx batted .327, drove in 79 runs, and scored 85 others, in just 400 official plate appearances.   

Foxx became the A’s full-time first baseman in 1929, appearing in 149 of their 154 games and helping them capture the first of three consecutive American League pennants. Hitting right behind slugging leftfielder Al Simmons in the Philadelphia batting order, Foxx placed among the league leaders with 33 home runs, 118 runs batted in, 123 runs scored, a .354 batting average, and a .625 slugging percentage. He also topped the circuit with a .463 on-base percentage.  The Athletics ended New York’s three-year reign as league champions by posting 104 victories, to finish 18 games ahead of the second-place Yankees.  They then defeated the Chicago Cubs in five games in the World Series, with Foxx batting .350, hitting two home runs, knocking in five runs, and scoring five others in the Fall Classic. 

Aided by another outstanding performance from their young first baseman, the Athletics repeated as American League champions in 1930, finishing the regular season with a 102-52 record, eight games ahead of the second-place Washington Senators. Foxx once again finished near the top of the league rankings in home runs (37), runs batted in (156), runs scored (127), batting average (.335), on-base percentage (.429), and slugging percentage (.637).  He then helped the A’s to their second straight World Series triumph by batting .333 against the Cardinals during the Series and hitting a game-winning two-run homer in the ninth inning of Game Five.

The A’s won their third consecutive American League pennant in 1931, compiling a franchise-best 107-45 record during the regular season, and finishing 13 ½ games ahead of the second-place Yankees.  Foxx had something of a subpar season, batting just .291

and scoring only 93 runs.  But he still managed to hit 30 home runs and drive in 120 runs. Although the A’s lost the World Series to the Cardinals in seven games, Foxx again played well in the Fall Classic, batting .348, hitting one homer, and knocking in three runs. 

It was during Philadelphia’s championship run that Foxx developed a reputation as one of the game’s great sluggers.  Possessing incredible physical strength, the 5’11”, 190-pound Foxx was perhaps the most muscular player of his era, prompting others to frequently refer to him as The Beast.  With his massive forearms, biceps, and chest, Foxx soon became known for his tape-measure home runs.  In Chicago, he hit a ball over the double-decked stands at Comiskey Park, clearing 34th Street.  He hit one of the longest balls ever in Detroit, way up into the leftfield bleachers.  Perhaps his most famous home run, though, came against Lefty Gomez at New York’s Yankee Stadium.  Foxx hit a long line drive that eventually struck a seat in the deepest part of the upper deck in left-centerfield. Estimates revealed that the ball would have traveled well over 500-feet had its flight not been interrupted by the shattered seat.  A stunned Gomez later commented, “I’ve developed a deep-rooted hatred for Foxx.  He hit two of the longest home runs I’ve ever seen – and they were both off me.”

Foxx’s awesome power terrified opposing pitchers.  Making him an even more imposing figure at the plate was his practice of cutting off the sleeves on his uniform, which exposed his powerful forearms and biceps for all to see. 

Chicago White Sox Hall of Fame pitcher Ted Lyons commented, “He (Foxx) had great powerful arms, and he used to wear his sleeves cut off way up, and when he dug in and raised that bat, his muscles would bulge and ripple.”

Lefty Gomez said of his adversary, “He has muscles in his hair.”

On one particular occasion, Gomez faced Foxx in a crucial situation at Yankee Stadium.  As Yankee catcher Bill Dickey flashed his signs to Gomez from behind home plate, the lefthander continued to shake off his receiver.  Finally, Dickey approached Gomez on the mound in an attempt to find out what pitch he wished to throw to Foxx.  Gomez responded by saying, “Nothing.  I figure if I wait awhile, maybe he’ll get a phone call.”

In his book Ted Williams’ Hit List, the Boston great ranked Foxx number three on his all-time list of baseball’s greatest hitters, behind only Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig (he excluded himself from his rankings).  Williams described Foxx in his book: “When you talk about power, you start with Foxx and Ruth…If anyone was ever capable of actually tearing the cover off the ball, it would be Double-X.”

Williams went on to say, “It sounded like cherry bombs going off when Foxx hit them.  Hank Greenberg hit them pretty near as far, but they didn’t sound that same way.  They sounded like firecrackers when Mantle and Foxx hit them – and I never heard anyone say that about Ruth’s or Greenberg’s home runs.  Foxx and Mantle were two guys from different eras, but I saw quite a bit of them both.  I never saw another righthanded hitter, except Mantle and Foxx, really crush the ball – I mean crush it – when he hit it like those guys did.”

New York Yankees Hall of Fame catcher Bill Dickey corroborated The Splendid Splinter’s assessment of Foxx, saying, “If I were catching blindfolded, I’d always know when it was Foxx who connected.  He hit the ball harder than anyone else.”         

Although the Athletics failed to repeat as American League champions in 1932, finishing 13 games behind the first-place Yankees, Foxx established himself as the most dominant hitter in baseball.  The slugging first baseman came within a few percentage points of capturing the American League triple crown by finishing a close second in the batting race with a mark of .364, while leading the junior circuit with 58 home runs, 169 runs batted in, 151 runs scored, 438 total bases, and a .749 slugging percentage.  Foxx easily outpolled Lou Gehrig for league MVP honors.

Foxx was again baseball’s greatest player in 1933, when he led the American League with 48 home runs, 163 runs batted in, and a .356 batting average to win the triple crown.  He also topped the circuit with 403 total bases and a .703 slugging percentage, en route to winning his second straight Most Valuable Player Award.  

Foxx continued to excel in Philadelphia, even after team owner and manager Connie Mack sold off most of his best players to other teams.  Al Simmons was dispatched to the Chicago White Sox at the conclusion of the 1932 campaign.  Lefty Grove was sold to Boston at the end of the 1933 season, and Mickey Cochrane was dealt to Detroit shortly thereafter.  Even without much of a supporting cast, Foxx managed to place among the league leaders with 44 homers, 130 runs batted in, 120 runs scored, and a .334 batting average in 1934.  He followed that up with an outstanding 1935 campaign, during which he led the league with 36 home runs and a .636 slugging percentage, while also driving in 115 runs, scoring 118 others, and batting .346.  Mack finally decided to part with the one remaining link to Philadelphia’s three championship teams when he sold Foxx to Boston prior to the start of the 1936 campaign. 

Foxx continued his onslaught on American League pitching as a member of the Red Sox, combining for 77 home runs, 270 runs batted in, and 241 runs scored in his first two seasons with his new team.  He then became the first player to win three Most Valuable Player Awards in 1938, when he hit 50 home runs, scored 139 runs, and led the American League with 175 runs batted in, 119 walks, a .349 batting average, a .462 on-base percentage, and a .704 slugging percentage.  Only Hank Greenberg’s 58 homers for Detroit prevented Foxx from winning the triple crown for the second time in his career.  Nevertheless, Foxx became the first player to surpass 50 home runs with two different teams. 

Foxx also performed extremely well in each of the next three seasons, before his skills finally began to erode in 1942.  He spent his final three years as a part-time player for the Red Sox, Cubs, and Phillies, retiring at the conclusion of the 1945 campaign. 

Foxx ended his career as the second leading home run hitter in baseball history, trailing only Babe Ruth, with 534 round-trippers. He also compiled 1,922 runs batted in, 1,751 runs scored, 2,646 hits, and a .325 batting average.  In addition to his three Most Valuable Player Awards, Foxx finished in the top ten in the balloting three other times, placing second to New York’s Joe DiMaggio in 1939.  He led the American League in home runs four times, runs batted in, batting average, and on-base percentage three times each, runs scored once, and slugging percentage five times.  Foxx surpassed 40 homers five times, 150 runs batted in five times, and 120 runs scored eight times.  He also batted over .350 on four separate occasions.  Foxx hit more than 30 homers and knocked in more than 100 runs in 12 straight seasons, from 1929 to 1930.  Alex Rodriguez is the only other player in baseball history to accomplish that feat.

Unfortunately, Foxx wasn’t nearly as successful off the field.  He drank heavily, made several poor business decisions, and saw most of the earnings he accumulated during his baseball career disappear.  He eventually turned to managing and coaching in the minor leagues to earn a living.  He also briefly worked in the Red Sox radio booth. Foxx passed away in July of 1967, at the age of 59, when he choked to death on a piece of meat while dining with his brother.  

Years after his passing, Jimmie Foxx remains one of the greatest sluggers in baseball history, and one of the most dominant hitters ever to play the game.  John Steadman, sportswriter for the Baltimore Sun and formerly with the Baltimore News American, once said, “With apologies to Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Ralph Kiner, and others, Jimmie Foxx was (and still is) the greatest righthanded slugger of all time.”

Jimmie Foxx quotes

▪️1) “If anyone was ever capable of actually tearing the cover off the ball, it would be Double-X. . . . It sounded like cherry bombs going off when Foxx hit them!” ~ Ted Williams

▪️2) “Jimmie Foxx [is] maybe the greatest right-handed power hitter of all-time. When I first came up, I used to talk hitting with Jimmie whenever I had a chance. He was a friendly, warm person, always very helpful to everybody.” ~ Hank Greenberg

▪️3) “If I were catching blindfolded, I’d always know when it was Jimmie Foxx who connected. He hit the ball harder than anyone else.” ~ Bill Dickey

▪️4) “Foxx has abnormal strength in his two forearms, which permits him to handle a big war bludgeon as if it were a feather duster. This strength of hands, wrists, and arms gives him a lashing power, which might break up a ball game at any given moment.” ~ Grantland Rice

▪️5) “When I was 12, I could cut corn all day, help in the wheat fields, swing 200-pound bags of phosphate off a platform into a wagon. We had games on the farm to test strength and grip. . . . Another trick was to lift a 200-pound keg of nails without letting the keg touch your body. I could do that easily.” ~ Jimmie Foxx

▪️6) “He [Foxx] had great powerful arms, and he used to wear his sleeves cut off way up, and when he dug in and raised that bat, his muscles would bulge and ripple.” ~ Ted Lyons

▪️7) “Look at those shoulders! That boy’s a natural-born batting wonder. No more coddling or training could make a fence-buster like that! Jimmy Foxx was just a rookie when canny Connie Mack gave him that size-up. Four years later he was crowding the swat kings of both leagues.” ~ Robert Ripley in a 1930 ad for Old Gold Cigarettes

▪️8) “He [Foxx] has petrified Philadelphia baseball followers in recent days with a series of home runs that carried so far as to make open-mouthed spectators believe that it was an overt violation of Ruth’s well-known copyright for distance.” ~ Connie Mack (1930)

▪️9) “[T]he trail of Foxx’s longest drives challenges credibility. Twenty-four times he cleared the 65-foot high left field grandstand roof in Philadelphia. At Comiskey Park in Chicago, where no one else reached the towering roof more than twice, ‘The Beast’ did it six times. . . . Everywhere Foxx logged more than just a few games, and in many places where he stopped only once, the man hit home runs that defied logical analysis.” ~ Bill Jenkinson (SABR)

▪️10) “When Neil Armstrong first set foot on the moon, he and all the space scientists were puzzled by an unidentifiable white object. I knew immediately what it was. That was a home run ball hit off me in 1937 by Jimmie Foxx.” ~ Lefty Gomez

▪️11) “James [Jimmie] Foxx is the most promising player I have ever seen.” ~ Home Run Baker (1924)

▪️12) “Jimmy Foxx, Herculean batsman for the Philadelphia Athletics, is being picked by baseball critics as the man who will make fans forget about the mighty Babe Ruth. When he pounded out his fortieth home run the other day, Foxx was more than a month ahead of the Babe’s mark at that date in 1927.” ~ The Roanoke Rapids Herald (August 1932)

▪️13) “If I had broken Ruth’s record it wouldn’t have made any difference. Oh, it might have put a few more dollars in my pocket, but there was only one Ruth.” ~ Jimmie Foxx

▪️14) “If it wasn’t for [Mickey] Cochrane, Foxx would have developed into a great catcher. He was the greatest all-around athlete I ever saw play Major League Baseball.” ~ Rick Ferrell

▪️15) “He’s a marvel, isn’t he? Tell me: who was a better all-around ball player than Foxxie? Why right now I’d say he was the best catcher in the American League. . . . They can talk all they want to about some of those old-time ball players being able to play different positions. I’ll take Foxxie. They don’t come any better.” ~ Joe Cronin

▪️16) “I can play any position except shortstop. I don’t like shortstop.” ~ Jimmie Foxx

▪️17) “He [Foxx] was the greatest natural athlete I have ever seen.” ~ Professor John Bruehl, who had once scrimmaged against Jim Thorpe.

▪️18) “He was built like a Greek god with bulging biceps and sculpted physique. His rounded face was marked by handsome features set off by a full head of brown hair and bright blue eyes. His joy was infectious, hustling on the field with a spontaneous smile and boundless enthusiasm. He played the game with a combination of speed and power that a later generation would see in Mickey Mantle. Foxx ran like a cheetah, threw like an Olympic javelin champion, and hit the ball like Babe Ruth.” ~ Bill Jenkinson (SABR)

▪️19) “When he got good wood on a pitch, it took you 20 minutes to walk where the ball landed. He was the only hitter I ever saw who could hit balls on his fist and still get them out of the park.” ~ Lefty Gomez

▪️20) “If I’d had Foxx’s strength, I’d have hit a hundred extra homers.” ~ Ted Williams

▪️21) “Some of these days when baseball historians meet to award the capital prize of the national game to its greatest player of all time, they are not going to give the title and plaque to Tyrus Raymond Cobb, nor to George Herman Ruth. . . . The present-day has its candidate for the greatest of all ballplayers, and his name is James Emory Foxx.” ~ The Washington Times-Herald (1940)

▪️22) “The star slugger gave handsome tips to everyone from the bellhop to the batboy, and he insisted on picking up the entire tab at every dinner and outing. He was known to literally give the shirt off his back if someone asked him for it. Many years later, Foxx’s former teammates and opponents still spoke with reverence of his personal kindness and goodwill.” ~ John Bennett (SABR)

▪️23) “Jimmie was one of my personal friends. I loved him. . . . Every ballplayer admired Jimmie Foxx.” ~ Harlond Clift

▪️24) “Daddy, he just enjoyed interacting with people. It didn’t matter if you were the president or the garbage man. He would sit there and sign autographs for hours.” ~ Nanci Foxx Canaday

▪️25) “Jimmie Foxx was good for baseball. Players and fans liked him for his happy nature, positive attitude, and baseball heroics. . . . He was a good ambassador for baseball, much like Ernie Banks, Brooks Robinson, or Cal Ripken.” ~ Mark Millikin

📖 Source: Millikin, Mark. “Jimmie Foxx: The Pride of Sudlersville.” Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2005. + Cohen, Robert. “The 50 Greatest Players in Boston Red Sox History.” Guilford, CT: Lyons Press, 2014. + https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov + https://baseballhall.org + https://sabr.org + http://www.theknoxstudent.com + https://baseballhistorydaily.com + https://www.myeasternshoremd.com + https://www.baseball-almanac.com

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