Prospect watch: Jake Fox — LF, Iowa Cubs
Every few years there’s a guy who comes out of nowhere to tear it up — see Craig Brazell in the minors in 2007, Ryan Ludwick in MLB in 2008 — and this year’s version of that player just might be Iowa Cubs left fielder Jake Fox.
Fox, a 26-year-old converted catcher who starred for Michigan before the Chicago Cubs drafted him in the third round of the 2003 draft, is tearing it up in Class AAA.
Through 33 games, he’s hitting .426 with 16 home runs and 46 RBI — totals that would be contending for the Triple Crown if he were in the majors right now. (As it is right now, he’s winning the Triple Crown in the Pacific Coast League.)
In his last 10 games, he’s hitting .515 with four homers and 15 RBI, a highlight-reel night coming on May 14 when he went 4-for-6 with a double, a homer, drove in two and scored three runs.
Fox has a career .292 average and 121 home runs in seven minor-league seasons. His previous career-high is 25 homers, set last season between Class AA Tennessee and Iowa. He had a seven-game stint with the Cubs in 2007, where he hit .143 in with one RBI in 14 at-bats.
Fox has appeared on 46 cards since 2003, his priciest being his 2003 Upper Deck Prospect Premieres Autograph (No. P30), which books for $15 high. His only appearance on a Bowman card is in the 2007 Bowman Sterling set (No. JQF), which is a $2.50 card.
In situations where a player emerges, there will be added interest in his cards — even if it’s just a short burst and only a handful of prospectors or collectors of a franchise digging in. There was heat with Brazell even though he was a long-time minor leaguer and ultimately ended up playing (well, at least power-wise) in Japan last season.
How are Fox’s cards selling? Well enough that the only copies of his Prospect Premieres Autograph on eBay have $35, $49 and $59 price tags attached. Among past auctions, the cards have been steady sellers from $15 to $30 range.
Does Fox have a future in Chicago? Not everyday with the Cubbies’ current outfielders, but one would think he’d get a shot sometime this season with those kinds of numbers.
Chris Olds has collected sports cards and memorabilia since 1987. Before coming to Beckett Media, he wrote about the hobby for the Orlando Sentinel on his blog, SportsStuff, and for the San Antonio Express-News and The Tuscaloosa (Ala.) News. Do you have a comment, question or idea? Send e-mail to him at colds@beckett.com.
