As a teen, Alan Foster was a pitching prospect being compared with Sandy Koufax. At 26, he was a pitching project hoping to get another chance to stick in the majors.
Fifty years ago, in 1973, the Cardinals threw a lifeline to Foster, inviting him to spring training as a non-roster pitcher. He made the most of the opportunity, earning a spot on the Opening Day pitching staff and working his way into the starting rotation.
A right-hander who made his big-league debut in 1967, Foster had his first winning season in the majors with the 1973 Cardinals. He achieved career highs that year in wins (13), innings pitched (203.2) and strikeouts (106).
By design
When Foster was a senior at Los Altos High School in Hacienda Heights, Calif., near Los Angeles, he struck out 188 batters in 99 innings and posted an ERA of 0.39, according to The Sporting News.
“What attracted the scouts was that, besides being able to throw very hard, I was accomplished in other aspects of pitching,” Foster told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “I had good control. I could hit the corners. I knew how to pitch, in and out. I was able to make a lot of hitters look ridiculous.”
Foster’s father, a physician, told the scouts his son wanted to study architecture at UCLA and would opt for college unless offered a substantial contract, the Los Angeles Times reported.
On the recommendation of scout Ben Wade, the Dodgers selected Foster, 18, in the second round of the 1965 June amateur draft (ahead of catcher Johnny Bench). Foster signed after his father negotiated a $97,000 contract for him, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Orient express
In 1966, playing for manager Bob Kennedy at Albuquerque, Foster was 11-5 with a 2.86 ERA. The Dodgers, 1966 National League champions, brought Foster on their tour of Japan after the World Series. Pitching against Japanese all-star teams, Foster, 19, impressed, earning three wins and posting a 2.53 ERA in 32 innings pitched.
In a story headlined “Rookie Pitcher Steals Show on Dodgers Tour,” the Los Angeles Times described Foster’s pitching as “dazzling.”
“He has an easy motion like Sandy Koufax,” umpire Doug Harvey told the newspaper.
The Sporting News rated Foster’s pitches “as impressive as (a young) Koufax.”
(While in Japan, Foster met Cristina Rodriguez. Born and raised there, she was the daughter of a film distributor, according to the Post-Dispatch. Alan and Cristina married three years later.)
High expectations
Foster, 20, opened the 1967 season with the Dodgers. making his debut in relief against the Braves, The first batter he faced: Hank Aaron.
“I was going to try to show him I was not just another wild kid,” Foster said to Sports Illustrated. “Well, the first pitch went right over his head and the second one wasn’t much better. Now I’m two balls behind to Henry Aaron.”
Foster made another bad pitch, but Aaron swung and bounced out to shortstop Gene Michael. Foster pitched two scoreless innings. “I wasn’t nervous,” he told the Los Angeles Times, “but I sure was excited.” Boxscore
(For his career, Aaron batted .366 with 15 hits, including two home runs, against Foster.)
After another relief appearance, Foster was sent to Spokane to get starts. He pitched two no-hitters against the Angels’ Seattle farm team, winning both by 1-0 scores, and a two-hitter, striking out 15, versus the Cardinals’ Tulsa affiliate.
At Dodgers spring training in 1968, Foster was a center of attention. Under the headline, “Best Rookies of 1968,” Foster appeared on the cover of the March 11 Sports Illustrated, along with the Reds’ Johnny Bench, the Cardinals’ Mike Torrez, the Tigers’ Don Pepper (father of golf pro Dottie Pepper) and Cisco Carlos of the White Sox.
“Alan Foster is the man (Dodgers owner) Walter O’Malley hopes can help his team back into contention,” Sports Illustrated exclaimed. “When the Dodgers get high on a pitcher, the National League had best look out.”
At the annual Dodgers spring training party hosted by O’Malley and his wife Kay, pitcher Mudcat Grant sang to the accompaniment of teammates Foster and Tommy Hutton on guitars, The Sporting News noted.
It was a surprise when the Dodgers sent Foster back to Spokane.
Coming up short
Foster stuck with the Dodgers in 1969 but finished 3-9 with a 4.38 ERA.
One of his best performances that season came in a losing effort against the Cardinals. Foster held them to a run and three hits in eight innings, but Steve Carlton pitched a five-hit shutout in a 1-0 victory. Boxscore
“I guess I’m not very lucky,” Foster said to the Los Angeles Times. “That’s the best I’ve ever pitched in the major leagues … I can’t pitch any better than that.”
Three months later, the Pirates’ Willie Stargell launched a Foster curve more than 500 feet over the roof of the right field pavilion and into the parking lot, becoming the first batter to hit a home run out of Dodger Stadium. Describing the blast in the Los Angeles Times, Ross Newhan wrote, “It appeared to be Apollo 12.” Boxscore
After a 10-13 record and 4.26 ERA for the 1970 Dodgers, Foster was traded to the Cleveland Indians.
Humbling tumble
Before joining the Indians, Foster said he hurt his arm playing winter baseball in Mexico, the Post-Dispatch reported. Then, on the first road trip of the 1971 season, he damaged his right elbow lugging his luggage. “I had to nurse that along without telling anybody,” he said to the newspaper.
Traded to the Angels after finishing 8-12 for the 1971 Indians, Foster spent most of 1972 in the minors. “It humbled me,” Foster told The Sporting News. “It taught me not to take anything for granted. I matured then.”
Called up to the Angels in September 1972, Foster made three relief appearances. Cardinals player personnel director Bob Kennedy, who’d managed Foster at Albuquerque six years earlier, scouted him and liked what he saw. “He has a lot of desire now,” Kennedy told the Post-Dispatch.
Kennedy and Cardinals player development director Fred Koenig recommended Foster to general manager Bing Devine. The Cardinals purchased Foster’s contract in February 1973 and put him on a minor-league roster.
On the rise
At Cardinals spring training, Foster, 26, emerged as a force, posting a 1.61 ERA in 28 innings. “I couldn’t have done any better,” Foster told The Sporting News, “and if I had done a little worse, I probably wouldn’t have stayed with this club.”
After six relief appearances to start the 1973 season, Foster joined a starting rotation with Bob Gibson, Rick Wise and Reggie Cleveland.
In Foster’s first Cardinals start, at Dodger Stadium, Al Downing beat him, pitching a two-hit shutout. Foster got one of the hits. Boxscore
In his next start, Foster shut out the Expos on a four-hitter. He also singled twice, scored twice and had a sacrifice bunt. Boxscore
Foster finished 13-9 overall (13-7 as a starter) for the 1973 Cardinals. He had six complete games and two shutouts.
“This year, I finally began to have full command of my pitches,” Foster told The Sporting News. “I’ve cut down on the number of pitches and I’ve been ahead of most of the hitters. That’s the only way to pitch. When you get behind, a .300 hitter becomes a .600 hitter.”
Winding down
Foster had an inconsistent 1974 season for the Cardinals. He shut out the Giants and pitched a three-hitter against the Mets. Boxscore and Boxscore
He also twice produced three hits in a game. Boxscore and Boxscore
However, Foster lost five of his first six decisions. In June 1974, the Cardinals offered Foster, Mike Garman and Mike Tyson to the Cubs for shortstop Don Kessinger, but were turned down, The Sporting News reported. (The Cardinals acquired Kessinger for Garman in October 1975.)
Foster got his record to 7-7, then lost three in a row and was removed from the rotation in September 1974. Two months later, he was traded to the Padres.
In 10 seasons in the majors, Foster was 48-63 overall, 20-19 with the Cardinals.