Matthew James Foster (born January 27, 1995) is an American

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professional ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

for the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2020.

Amateur career

Foster attended Valley High School in

Valley, Alabama Valley is a city in Chambers County, Alabama, United States. Valley was incorporated in 1980 combining the four textile mill villages of Fairfax, Langdale, River View, and Shawmut. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 9,524. The city li ...

. He was drafted by the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The ...

in the 29th round of the

2013 MLB draft The 2013 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was held from June 6 through June 8, 2013. The first two rounds were broadcast from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. Each team received one selection per round, going in ...

, but did not sign. He attended

Gulf Coast State College Gulf Coast State College is a public college in Panama City, Florida. It is part of the Florida College System and offers the Associate of Arts degree, Associate of Science degree, certificates, and as of 2011, bachelor's degrees. History The ...

for two years (2014-2015). He then transferred to the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the publi ...

, and played for the Crimson Tide for the 2016 season. Foster was drafted by the

in the 20th round of the 2016 MLB draft.

Professional career

Foster split the 2016 season between the

Arizona League White Sox The Arizona Complex League White Sox are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Chicago White Sox, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Camelback Ranch in Phoenix, Arizona. The team is compos ...

and the

Great Falls Voyagers The Great Falls Voyagers are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Great Falls, Montana, and play their home games at Cente ...

, going a combined 0–0 with a 0.61 ERA over innings. He split the 2017 season between the

Kannapolis Intimidators Kannapolis () is a city in Cabarrus and Rowan counties, in the U.S. state of North Carolina, northwest of Concord and northeast of Charlotte and is a suburb in the Charlotte metropolitan area. The city of Kannapolis was incorporated in 1984. The ...

and the

Winston-Salem Dash The Winston-Salem Dash are a Minor League Baseball team in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. They are a High-A team in the South Atlantic League and have been a farm team of the Chicago White Sox since 1997. The Dash began playing their home games a ...

, going a combined 0–2 with a 1.30 ERA over innings. He played for the

Glendale Desert Dogs The Glendale Desert Dogs are a baseball team that plays in the West Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona. The ballpark is also the spring training facility of the Chicago White ...

of the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fille ...

following the 2017 season. He split the 2018 season between Winston-Salem and the Birmingham Barons, going a combined 2–5 with a 3.30 ERA over 60 innings. He split the 2019 season between Birmingham and the

Charlotte Knights The Charlotte Knights are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They are located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and play their home games at Truist Field, which opened in 20 ...

, going a combined 4–1 with a 3.20 ERA over innings. Foster was added to the White Sox 40–man roster following the 2019 season. On July 29, 2020, Foster was called up to the major leagues. He made his MLB debut on August 1, pitching a scoreless inning of relief and earning a win in the process. With the 2020 Chicago White Sox, Foster appeared in 23 games, compiling a 6-1 record with 2.20 ERA and 31 strikeouts in innings pitched. Foster struggled in 2021 as he was in and out of Triple-A in that season. Foster appeared in just 37 games in the Major Leagues compiling a 2–1 record with a 6.00 ERA in 39 innings while striking out 40 batters.

References

External links

Alabama Crimson Tide bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, Matt 1995 births Living people People from Valley, Alabama Baseball players from Alabama Major League Baseball pitchers Chicago White Sox players Alabama Crimson Tide baseball players Arizona League White Sox players Great Falls Voyagers players Kannapolis Intimidators players Winston-Salem Dash players Birmingham Barons players Charlotte Knights players Glendale Desert Dogs players