Blane Fox saw 7 pro seasons with Tigers, others, made AA
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The AA New Britain Red Sox needed at hit in the final frame of this May 1991 contest and Blane Fox delivered, sending one to a precise spot for the game-winner, The Hartford Courant wrote.
"I stepped out and looked around and saw a big gap up the middle," Fox told The Courant afterward. "So I wanted to put it back up the middle. This is definitely a big one for the team."
Fox hit that game-winner in his seventh pro season. It also proved his last. He topped out there at AA.
Fox' career began in 1984, signed by the Tigers as a free agent out of St. Johns River State College in Florida and Grand Ledge High School in Michigan.
Fox started with the Tigers in 1985 at rookie Bristol. He saw 59 games and hit .236. He spoke with his hometown Lansing State Journal to start the year about his experiences to that point.
"Some things are the way I thought they'd be, and some aren't," Fox told The State Journal. "There are a lot of good ballplayers here, which I envisioned, the best of everybody around."
Fox moved to single-A Gastonia for 1986, then single-A Lakeland for 1987 and 1988. He hit .251 in his first season at Lakeland and .260 in his second.
For 1989, he moved to the Astros and Mets systems. He saw 73 games, including 41 at AA Columbus with the Astros. He hit .233 overall.
Fox arrived with the Red Sox for 1990 and played 65 games at high-A Winter Haven. He hit .222. He then played 1991 at New Britain. He hit .213 in 57 games to end his career.
Fox soon settled in Florida and became a high school coach. In 2006, he joined Lakeland Christian as head baseball coach, a job he held into 2020.
- Lansing State Journal, March 23, 1985: Outfield prospects Fox, Fields try to improve, impress Tigers
- Hartford Courant, May 25, 1991: Britsox win close one, then settle for split
Made the Majors:1,482-31.6%
Never Made Majors:3,210-68.4%-X