Remembering Billy Cox

Billy Cox

Before anyone ever sees Brooks Robinson or Mike Schmidt play an inning in the field, baseball's best defensive third baseman is Billy Cox, the pride of Newport, Pa.

Cox, who passes away far too young at age 58, would have turned 106 today.

Cox spends seven of his 11 seasons in the majors playing for the Brooklyn Dodgers and anchoring the game's best infield with Hall of Famers Jackie Robinson at second base, Pee Wee Reese at shortstop and Gil Hodges at first.

As Yankees Hall of Fame manager Casey Stengel once says of Cox, “That ain’t no third baseman; that’s a f------ acrobat.”

Cox’s lifetime fielding percentage at third base is .965 – a tick behind Robinson’s .971 career mark and ahead of Schmidt’s .955.

Cox’s professional career starts in 1940 on Harrisburg’s City Island, where he plays two seasons with the Senators and bats .363 in 1941 on his way to the majors.

Looking for more to read? More than 2,600 archived posts may be found at Blog 3 — Baseball (and other cool stuff) … Enjoy!