CAMERON’S CASTON FOX
By Buck Ringgold
Some may say hitting a baseball is the hardest thing to do in any sport.
Caston Fox is one of those who truly believes in that adage. The Cameron High School junior relishes the challenge of swinging away.
“It’s proven to be the hardest thing to do in all sports,” Fox said. “It’s more one-on-one, and if I beat you, I’m better than you.
“There’s no other factors. It’s me against you and whoever wins, wins.”
Actually, Fox did elaborate on a few other reasons why hitting a baseball can be quite difficult.
“I’ve seen studies where it’s proven to be the hardest because of spin rate, drop and distance, perception and swing path; everything has to be perfect for you that can make contact with the baseball,” he said.
Fox definitely more than held his own last spring hitting the baseball. Playing for Poteau, he batted .472 along with an on-base percentage of 1.218 and a slugging percentage of .694. He had two home runs and 27 RBIs as well.
When asked if Fox is more of a contact hitter or a power hitter, he remarked he can do a combination of both.
“It just depends day-to-day where my swing is, if I’m feeling more like I can take hacks, I’m going to try to see how hard I can hit a ball,” he said. “Then if I’m a little bit off one day, I’ll have more of an opposite gap approach. … I kind of do what’s best for the team.”
Fox, who plays third base and also pitches, transferred to Cameron in the offseason. He was part of the Yellowjackets’ run to the state tournament in fall baseball.
Now, entering the spring season, he wants to help Cameron make it back to state for the second straight spring. But this time, go much farther and perhaps be in the championship game.
“The boys believe that we should,” he said. “We’ve all put in the work and we believe that.
“We have a shot at winning it, winning the whole thing. So we’re we’re going to all fight tooth and nail just to see how far we can go.”
It would also mean a return to Cameron’s glory days, when the Yellowjackets won eight spring state titles from 1989-98. Fox’s father, Chad, was a part of that title run, and now the younger Fox wants championship glory of his own.
“All the kids here are wanting to do better and do the best that they can,” he said. “They’re all in and all committed to the team.”
Fox, who possesses a 3.9 grade-point average, has recently attended hitting camps with an eye on the ball and his college future.
“It went pretty good down,” Fox said. “My (batting practice) rounds looked good and everything. I mean, it just kind of depends on waiting on to see who offers.”
