Jake Fox: The promising Guardians prospect with a bright future
In 2022, the Cleveland Guardians were one of baseball's biggest surprises as they made a postseason run ahead of schedule. With a roster full of young talent, they are poised to be an issue in the AL Central for years to come. One prospect who is expected to be a big part of their future is Jake Fox. The Guardians selected him with the 95th overall pick in the 2021 draft. He is currently ranked as the Guardians' 14th-best prospect and has had a unique journey to Cleveland.
“I was kind of a late bloomer on the circuit. I wasn’t a prospect until late in my junior year. Entering my senior year, I still didn’t know what round I would be picked in. I had a big senior year and communicated with my agent a lot. I was blessed to get picked by the Guardians in third round, “Fox said.
While Fox had committed to the University of Florida, his opportunity with the Guardians was too good to pass up. That decision was tough for him, but it is a choice he does not regret.
“Some advice I got regarding the draft was don’t not sign because of a hundred thousand dollars or fifty thousand dollars. If you wanna go play pro ball, go play pro ball or if you wanna go to school, go to school. If you get less than your number in the long run it isn’t going to make a huge difference,” Fox said.
The Lakeland native impressed early on as he hit .405 in his first professional season. While he only played in 13 games in the ACL, he had 17 hits in 42 at-bats. In 2022 his average dropped, but Fox showed more power.
As the 19-year-old adjusted to a new league, he hit .242 in 380 at-bats. Fox made an impact offensively with 34 extra-base hits. He was also a threat when he got on base with 21 stolen bases. Although he had a solid season, the former third-round pick was still adjusting to minor leagues.
“When I was drafted, I had just turned 19 so I didn’t know the timeline for everything. After I got drafted, the Guardians said we are going to have you out at our complex in a week. It was superfast. The biggest thing for me was being on my own for a little bit and being around a lot of older guys. In my draft class 18 out of the 20 were college kids. I was around older guys, and I liked the maturity level of those guys,” Fox said.
While Fox was in a completely new environment, he credits some of his success to how the Guardians help out their younger players make the transition to professional baseball.
“Our organization is great with young guys. They make the jump from high school to pro ball easier than it should be. The training levels are so high, and everyone is great at what they do, and they have all the resources available,” Fox said.
As the Lakeland Christian High School product prepares for his third professional season, his main goal is to add strength. He has posted a .263 average in the minors but only hit five home runs. Over the next few months, he will be looking to add more power and surpass his power numbers from 2022.
“I flew up to Cleveland at the end of the year and went over some goals. The big thing for me is building strength overall and working on mobility. Also getting more live reps in the outfield since I’m playing some centerfield now as well as the middle infield. The first time I stepped in the outfield was this year,” Fox said.
Follow Jamie on Twitter @JamieGatlin17
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