4 random Chicago Cubs players who had insane, unsustainable hot streaks

Chicago Cubs: Jake Fox surprised many filling in the injury holes on the roster

The quest to avenge the 97-win 2008 Cubs’ loss in the NLDS in 2009 took a big hit when Aramis Ramirez dislocated his left shoulder in early May in Milwaukee. Jake Fox came up a few weeks later and play third, as well as left field and even a few stints at catcher.

Fox was a third-round pick out of U of M in 2003 and going into 2009 had just seven career MLB games under his belt. He was tearing it up in Iowa that season, slashing .409/.495/.841 with 17 home runs in just 45 games before getting the call. His production for the Iowa Cubs had translated over to the Majors for a solid stretch.

In his first 61 games as a Cub in 2009 he slahsed .300/.348/.556 with 10 home runs, .904 OPS, 11 doubles and 39 RBI. This was from the end of May through late August. Over that stretch, he was pretty consistent which helped keep his slash looking good. He also produced a handful of timely home runs.

After hitting a grand slam and driving in five runs on August 29, the cool-off began. In his final 21 games, he slashed just .143/.200/.214 with one home run and .414 OPS. By that point the Cardinals had taken control of the NL Central and the Cubs wound up missing the playoffs for the first time since 2006, though they did finish the year with a winning record.

Fox was later traded to the Oakland Athletics, along with Aaron Miles for some minor leaguers and pitcher Jeff Gray. In terms of MLB stints he played 77 games in 2010 with the A’s and Orioles and another 27 games with Baltimore in 2011. While never playing in the majors again he spent time with the Pirates, Phillies, Diamondbacks and Blue Jays organizations from 2012 through 2017.

Today he owns a baseball apparel business called The Fox Code.