A few weeks ago I posted a piece on the Sudlersville Train Station. A block from the station is a memorial to the hometown hero, baseball’s Hall of Fame, Jimmie Foxx.
James E. (Jimmie) Foxx was born in Sudlersville on October 22, 1907 to Dell and and Mattie Foxx. Dell Foxx was a farmer and also played baseball on a town team. Jimmie Foxx was a superb athlete playing on three teams at Sudlerville’s High.
Jimmie Foxx joined the minor league team Easton Farmers, managed by Hall of Fame member Frank “Home Run” Baker. As a catcher Baker introduced Foxx to the Philadelphia Athletics. The New York Yankees also had interest in him, but he signed with Philadelphia. The Athletics moved him to 1st Base.
During his career (1925-1945) Foxx was one top offensive players in the baseball. He had 12, 30-home run seasons and 13, 100-RBI seasons and won three American League Most Valuable Player Awards. He won the Triple Crown in 1933. in that year on August 14th he hit for the cycle and had 9 RBI’s. When he retired his 534 career home runs were second to only Babe Ruth, and the most by any right-handed batter.
He was dubbed “The Beast” because of his powerful right-handed swing and the distance that his homers traveled. However he was thought as one of the kindest men in the game.
The character of Jimmy Dugan, played by Tom Hanks, in the film “A League of Their Own” is loosely based upon him. Foxx managed the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League’s Fort Wayne Daisies to a first place in 1952, his only year as the team’s manager.
On both this monument as well as his Hall of Fame plague has his name as “Jimmy”.
The statue of Foxx was erected on October 25, 1997.
—–
Support my photographic journey!
Become a Patron!
