One Of The Most Lopsided Trades Ever: The White Sox Obtain Nellie Fox!

Nellie Fox and 1959 World Series Photo Gallery
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Nellie Fox for Joe Tipton

Here’s one I think White Sox fans can will gladly put into the category of “Most Lopsided Trades of All Time!”  

Question to Bill Veeck in 1959: “Bill, how much do the White Sox need Nellie Fox this year?”  Veeck’s answer: “No more than your baby needs milk!” (From Veeck-As In Wreck”)

“I’ve never seen anybody who wanted to play more than Fox. In spring training, you had to literally run him off the field to get him to rest” – White Sox manager (1951-’54), Paul Richards, speaking of Nellie Fox.

Those quotes pretty well sum up Jacob Nelson Fox’s value to the White Sox. In one of their best trades in franchise history, 67 years ago today, October 19, 1949, the White Sox obtained future Hall of Famer and 1959 MVP Nellie Fox from the A’s in exchange for little-known catcher Joe Tipton.

After hitting only .247 in his 1951 debut with the White Sox, Nellie began an eleven season stretch of outstanding play with 11 All-Star selections. Over these years, Fox batted .299 and had 561 walks while striking out only 146 times. He set a major league record by playing in 798 consecutive games at second base. In the late 1950’s, Fox became the face of a spirited club affectionately known as the “Go Go Sox.” Crouched over the plate with a choked-up grip on a bottle-neck club, and with his always-present tobacco chaw bulging out his cheek, Fox was the table-setter and spark for a “small ball” team that relied upon speed and timely hitting.

Over his 19-year career, the diminutive (5’9”, 160 pounds) Fox played for the Athletics (1947-’49), White Sox (1950-’63), and Astros (1964-’65). He hit .288, with 2,663 hits, 35 home runs, and 790 RBIs. He led the American League in hits four times, hit .300 or more six times, and led the American League in singles eight times. The hard-nosed Fox was a 15-time All-Star, and was the third-hardest player to strike out in major league history, an astonishingly-low 216 strikeouts in over 10,000 plate appearances. 

His best year was his MVP season of 1959, leading the White Sox to the American League pennant, their first since the tarnished 1919 Black Sox scandal. Despite Fox’s .375 average in the 1959 World Series, the White Sox fell short, losing to the Dodgers four games to two. Fox played a league-leading 156 games in 1959, while batting .306 and recording the second-most hits (191) and doubles (34) in the American League. He also earned his sixth consecutive All-Star selection and his second Gold Glove Award.

Nellie Fox’s offensive numbers don’t tell his full story, as he was also one of the best defenders to ever play second base. He won three Gold Glove awards, despite the award not being introduced until 1957, and led American League second basemen in fielding percentage six times. In Joe Morgan’s 1990 Hall of Fame induction speech, he praised Nellie Fox, his mentor and idol during in his early days with the Colt .45s:

“I played with him, and I wouldn’t be standing here today if it wasn’t for what I learned from him. Above all, Nellie impressed upon me the importance of going to the park every day bringing something to help the team.”

Nellie Fox coached for the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers after his playing career. He passed away in 1975 at age 47, dying of cancer. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997.

-Gary Livacari

Photo Credits: All from Google search

Information: Excerpts edited from National Baseball Hall of Fame article on Nellie Fox: http://baseballhall.org/hof/fox-nellie

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