Rory Fox has placed his baseball career in God’s hands.
The Catholic Memorial High School grad wasn’t sure what would happen when he went to see his coaches at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana after his sophomore college season.
“It was a lot of late-night phone calls to my parents (Chris and Char). Infield play wasn’t working. I was at a crossroads,” Fox said.
“So, I went to the (ND) Grotto and gave it up to God. Whatever was in store for me, I didn’t know. So, I trusted in his plan,” said Fox, a Waukesha native.
Fox arrived at Notre Dame in the fall of 2022. For his first two baseball seasons, he was a two-way player: a middle infielder and a pitcher.
“I helped the team freshman year, then had surgery. That was really a test of faith. I would pitch bullpens during the week and start Sundays,” Rory said.
But he wasn’t sure what his junior season would hold. He had suffered through injuries but showed pitching promise with a 96-mph fastball. After consulting with his coaches, he chose to pitch, and the results were remarkable.
Fox was arguably the Irish’s best pitcher with 64 strikeouts in 65 innings pitched in 2025.
One of major league baseball’s storied franchises, the New York Yankees, saw Fox’s potential and drafted him in June as the 194th overall pick in the fifth round of the Major League Baseball draft.
In an interview with Baseball Prospect Journal, he said “Being here now and looking at everything I had to go through to get here makes me very thankful to God.”
But Fox’s journey in faith was no surprise. “I attended St. Mary’s school in Waukesha (part of Waukesha Catholic and now Corpus Christi) in grades K-8,” he recounted. “I loved going to Mass on Friday because I could go sit with my Grandma Fox.”
At Catholic Memorial, he played three sports: baseball, basketball and football. In football, during the Crusaders’ 14-0 state championship season, he was an all-state quarterback and punter. In 2021, he was a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel baseball player of the year finalist. But as a football captain and as the class valedictorian, Fox showed his leadership skills.
The fourth generation in his family to attend the University of Notre Dame, Fox majored in Environmental Science and made the decision to focus on baseball. “I dreamed of playing in the major leagues, so all of the work I put in came to fruition. My faith came to fruition,” he said. His brother Luke, also a CMH grad, is in single-A minor league baseball after being drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers, so the boys have their parents watching both East and West Coast baseball.
In addition to other faith influences, Rory Fox credits his late grandmother, Elaine Saber, for sharing so many of her faith experiences with him. “I’m thankful for hearing about her life and her faith.” While in college, Rory also was a member of the Notre Dame Christian Athletes group. “It was a great place to decompress and talk about Scripture,” he said.
Rory and his girlfriend, Reese Sanders, a Notre Dame hurdler, made a fun video of her doing batting practice against him. Proudly, she made contact with a few of his pitches. Already getting a taste of Gotham City media, the story made the New York Post newspaper.
Fox was thrilled to be drafted by New York.
In an interview on his way to Yankees rookie camp in Tampa, Florida, earlier this summer, Fox said, “My immediate goal is to keep working on my (pitcher) self and not shy away from the challenge. I need to get my feet wet, get to know everyone and go to the weight room. I am excited to get to work!”
Rory Fox enjoys a visit with his dad, Chris Fox, and late grandmother, Elaine Saber, on the Notre Dame University campus during his freshman year. (Submitted photo)
