World Series champ Steve Sax digitizes Babe Ruth art to raise money for foundation in honor of late Marine son

Steve Sax, a former MLB player, spoke with Fox News Digital about how he digitized a painting, ‘Babe and the Kids,’ and minted it on the blockchain as an NFT to raise funds for a family foundation in honor of his late son, Capt. John J. Sax.

On June 8, 2022, five U.S. Marines who were part of Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, died in a military aircraft accident in California that involved malfunctioning engines.

Capt. John J. Sax, USMC, was one of those aviators. In his honor, in 2023, the Sax family established the Captain John J. Sax Family Foundation.

"My son was just the greatest person I ever knew," Stephen Sax, a former MLB player and coach, told Fox News Digital. "My son has always been my hero. He always wanted to be an aviator, and my son really had to struggle through different parts to become that aviator."

While aspiring to become a jet fighter in the Navy, John blew out his elbow. Following his recovery, he was hit with another roadblock that resulted in treatment for an astigmatism. Again, John filed back in line for the Marine Corps. In 2020, John received his Marine "Wings of Gold."

MARINES KILLED IN MILITARY AIRCRAFT CRASH IN CALIFORNIA HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED

Capt. John J. Sax was a former U.S. Marine killed in an aviation accident in 2022. (Stephen Sax)

"The essence of the foundation, or the mission of the foundation, is to help other aviators, people that have a quest to become an aviator, a love for flight, to accomplish that goal," Sax said. "We’re going to help those same people that face obstacles in their quest to become a great aviator."

The foundation funds grants and scholarships to students and schools upholding the foundation’s mission of supporting and producing successful