Steven Eugene Foster Jr. (born August 16, 1966) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

player and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

. He played in

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) as a right-handed

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

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

from 1991 to 1993. Foster was the

pitching coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisio ...

for the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

from 2015 to 2021. Following the 2021 season, Foster took a different position with the Rockies—director of pitching—to spend more time with his family.

High school and college

Foster was born in Dallas, Texas and attended DeSoto High School in

DeSoto, Texas DeSoto is a city in Dallas County, Texas, in the United States. DeSoto is a suburb of Dallas and is part of the Best Southwest area, which includes DeSoto, Cedar Hill, Duncanville, and Lancaster. History The area was first settled in 1847, ...

, where he played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

as well as

. He amassed a 44–4 record and twice earned All-State honors pitching at DeSoto High, and led his team to the second State Championship in school history his senior year. He attended nearby

Blinn College Blinn College is a public junior college in Brenham, Texas, with additional campuses in Bryan, Schulenburg, and Sealy. Brenham is Blinn's main campus, with dormitories and apartments. History Blinn was established as Mission Institute in 1 ...

for a year before transferring to the

University of Texas at Arlington The University of Texas at Arlington (UTA or UT Arlington) is a public research university in Arlington, Texas. The university was founded in 1895 and was in the Texas A&M University System for several decades until joining the University of Te ...

. He earned Southland Conference Pitcher of the Year honors for UTA in . He also earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point in 1998 while serving as an assistant coach with the baseball team (1997–1998).

Cincinnati Reds

He was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the twelfth round of the 1988 Major League Baseball draft, and went 9–21 with a 2.80

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

and 72 saves over four seasons in their

farm system In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

to earn a call to Cincinnati in August . He gave up three

earned run In baseball, an earned run is any run that was fully enabled by the offensive team's production in the face of competent play from the defensive team. Conversely, an unearned run is a run that would not have been scored without the aid of an err ...

s in fourteen innings over the remainder of the season. Foster began the season with the Reds, but was optioned back to the triple A

Nashville Sounds The Nashville Sounds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, and are named for the ci ...

in the beginning of May. He pitched exceptionally once he returned, going 0–1 with a 2.13 ERA and two saves. The one loss came in his one career start against the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

. He began the season as

Rob Dibble Rob or ROB may refer to: Places * Rob, Velike Lašče, a settlement in Slovenia * Roberts International Airport (IATA code ROB), in Monrovia, Liberia People * Rob (given name), a given name or nickname, e.g., for Robert(o), Robin/Robyn * Rob ...

's set-up man, but began experiencing arm trouble toward the end of May. In one of the most notoriously strange baseball injuries, Foster landed on the

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

with an inflammation of his right shoulder after a segment on ''

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jay Leno that first aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009. It resumed production on March 1, 2010 and ended on February 6, 2014. The fourth incarnation of the ...

'' in which he threw baseballs at milk bottles. After a monthlong trip to the DL, Foster returned for one appearance in June. After which, it was learned that Foster had detached cartilage in his right shoulder and would be out for the rest of the season. He had surgery, and began a rehab assignment with the Reds in Spring of . After suffering numerous setbacks, he had a second surgery in August. After three brief appearances with the

Chattanooga Lookouts The Chattanooga Lookouts are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League and the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. They are located in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and are named for nearby Lookout Mountain. The team plays its home g ...

, his career was over.

Coaching

After his playing career, Foster worked as a scout with the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. Since its inception ...

in . He spent two years at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

coaching a baseball camp for college students before returning to the Rays as a scout in & . In , he began managing the

Wisconsin Woodchucks The Wausau Woodchucks are an American baseball team that plays in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. They play their home games at Athletic Park in Wausau, Wisconsin. History The team was known as the Wausau Woodchucks ...

of the Northwoods Collegiate Summer Baseball League. Following the season, he resigned to become youth pastor at Highland Community Church in

Wausau, Wisconsin Wausau ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Marathon County, Wisconsin, United States. The Wisconsin River divides the city into east and west. The city's suburbs include Schofield, Weston, Mosinee, Maine, Rib Mountain, Kronenwetter, and ...

. Foster returned to baseball in as

for the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

' Class A

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...

affiliate, the

Greensboro Grasshoppers The Greensboro Grasshoppers are a Minor League Baseball team based in Greensboro, North Carolina. They are members of the South Atlantic League and are the High-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They play their home games at First National ...

. After two seasons as a minor league coach, Foster became bullpen coach for the Florida Marlins from to , moving briefly into the pitching coach job toward the end of the 2007 season. On October 9, 2009, Foster declined the team's contract offer for the season. Shortly afterwards, he joined the Kansas City Royals organization. The Royals bullpen, ranked second to last in the majors in 2009 with a 5.02 ERA, showed modest improvement each season since Foster grabbed the reigns (4.49 ERA in , 3.75 in ). On November 4, 2014, he was hired as the pitching coach for the Colorado Rockies. On October 26, 2021, it was announced that Foster would be named the Rockies director of pitching, replacing incumbent

Mark Wiley Mark Eugene Wiley (born February 28, 1948) is the former Director of Pitching Operations for the Colorado Rockies. Wiley only pitched in parts of two Major League Baseball seasons, however, he has remained in the game as a pitching coach and front ...

Personal life

Foster is a devout

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

who, while serving as youth pastor at Highland Community Church, took the youth group on a missionary trip to the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...

. He and his wife, Cori, live in

Frisco, Texas Frisco is a city in Collin and Denton counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and about from both Dallas Love Field and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Its population was 200,509 at the 2 ...

, and have two children.

References

Lessons from Little League and Life (2007 Sunshine Mountain Press)

External links

Colorado Rockies coaching bio
* : {{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, Steve 1966 births Living people Sportspeople from DeSoto, Texas Baseball coaches from Texas Baseball players from Dallas Major League Baseball pitchers Cincinnati Reds players Major League Baseball bullpen coaches Major League Baseball pitching coaches Florida Marlins coaches Kansas City Royals coaches Colorado Rockies (baseball) coaches Tampa Bay Devil Rays scouts Blinn Buccaneers baseball players UT Arlington Mavericks baseball players Billings Mustangs players Cedar Rapids Reds players Chattanooga Lookouts players Nashville Sounds players Minor league baseball coaches Michigan Wolverines baseball coaches Wisconsin–Stevens Point Pointers baseball coaches University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point alumni Wisconsin Woodchucks players