Joe Foy

Joseph Anthony Foy

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 215 lb.
• High School Evander Childs High School
• Debut April 13, 1966
• Final Game May 27, 1971
• Born February 21, 1943 in New York, NY USA
• Died October 12, 1989 in Bronx, NY USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Joe Foy played six seasons in the major leagues, showing some power, an ability to draw walks, and defensive talent at third base.

Foy broke in with the Boston Red Sox as a regular in 1966, replacing the previous Red Sox third baseman, Frank Malzone, who had signed with the California Angels during the off-season. He had a very good rookie season, scoring 97 runs while hitting .262 with 15 homers and 63 RBI. Foy continued as the starter at third base in 1967 when the Red Sox won an unexpected pennant. He played in 6 of the 7 World Series games against the St. Louis Cardinals, but only went 2 for 15.

He dropped off a bit in 1968, hitting only .225 in a notoriously bad year for hitters, and was selected by the new Kansas City Royals in the 1969 expansion draft to play for their inaugural team in 1969. Because he played decently for the Royals (with 37 stolen bases and 11 home runs), he was traded to the New York Mets in the deal that brought Amos Otis to the Royals.

He spent a year under manager Gil Hodges with the Mets and then was picked up by the Washington Senators managed by Ted Williams, and lasted a half year with them before being released. By virtue of drawing a lot of walks, his Adjusted OPS+ was not bad, though, and he still had good range in the field.

He died of a heart attack at age 46 at his home in New York.

Notable Achievements

• 1965 Minor League Player of the Year, Toronto Maple Leafs, International League
• 1965 MVP International League, Toronto Maple Leafs

Further Reading

• Ray Birch: "Joe Foy", in Bill Nowlin and Dan Desrochers, eds.: The 1967 Impossible Dream Red Sox: 'Pandemonium on the Field', SABR, Rounder Books, Burlington, MA, 2007, pp. 48-51. ISBN 978-1-5794-0141-2
• Thomas Boswell: "All of Us Bear the Marks of the Lash", in How Life Imitates the World Series, Penguin Books, New York, 1982, pp. 106-108.

Related Sites

• Joe Foy at the SABR Bio Project