Batting average .429 Home runs 0 | Runs batted in 1 Name Charlie Fox | |
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A Change is Gonna Come, Charlie Fox
Charles Francis Fox (October 7, 1921 – February 16, 2004) was an American manager, general manager, scout, coach—and, briefly, a catcher—in Major League Baseball. As manager of the National League West Division champion San Francisco Giants in 1971, he was named "Manager of the Year" by The Sporting News.
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Early career
Born in New York City, Fox appeared in only three games as a Major League player—garnering three hits in seven at bats for a career batting average of .429—with the 1942 New York Giants. But Fox would spend another 33 years in that organization as a minor league catcher and manager and as a manager, scout and coach for the Giants, who relocated to San Francisco in 1958.
Fox spent eight years as manager of the Giants' Class C St. Cloud Rox team in the Northern League, scouted from 1957 to 1963, then managed the Giants' Triple-A Tacoma affiliate of the Pacific Coast League in 1964 before coming to the Major Leagues as a San Francisco coach under Herman Franks in 1965. He returned to the PCL to pilot the Giants' Phoenix affiliate in 1969–70 until he was summoned to San Francisco on May 24, 1970 to replace Clyde King as the manager of the MLB Giants. The Giants were stalled in fifth place in the NL West at 19–23 (.452), and had just lost a 15-inning game to San Diego, 17–16, the day before. Under Fox, the 1970 Giants recovered to go 14 games over .500 and finish third, 16 games behind Cincinnati.
Major League managerial career
Fox led the Giants to the NL West title in 1971, losing to the eventual world champion Pittsburgh Pirates in the National League Championship Series. Subsequently, the Giants made a series of bad trades and fell from contention thereafter. On June 27, 1974, after compiling a record of 348–327 (.516), Fox was replaced as manager by former stalwart Giants catcher Wes Westrum.
In 1976, he joined the front office of the Montreal Expos as a special assignment scout and served as the club's emergency manager when Karl Kuehl was fired September 4. After winning only 12 of 34 games to close out the season, Fox was named the club's general manager and was succeeded on the field by Dick Williams. He held the GM title in Montreal through the 1978 season.
Fox, however, was destined to serve another term as an interim manager. In 1983, while working as a special assistant to Chicago Cubs general manager Dallas Green, Fox took over from embattled skipper Lee Elia on August 22 and managed the Cubs for the final 39 games of the season, winning 17 and losing 22. In 1984, he was replaced by Jim Frey. He later coached under Green in 1989 with the New York Yankees, and scouted for the Houston Astros.
Fox's career major league managing record was 377–371 (.504).
Fox died at age 82 in Stanford, California.