The Extra Point: Former Alabama Pitcher in MLB Elects Free Agency

A former Alabama baseball pitcher elected free agency Monday.

Aug 28, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Matt Foster delivers a pitch against the Texas Rangers during the first inning of game two of the doubleheader at Guaranteed Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images / Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

The journey on Chicago’s South Side is over, for the time being, for one former Alabama baseball pitcher. Matt Foster, who pitched for the Crimson Tide in 2016 (the first season of the renovated Sewell-Thomas Stadium) has opted for free agency as of Monday. 

The decision came following an outright assignment to Triple-A Charlotte. The 29-year-old righty hurler lost the 2023 season to Tommy John surgery and only made six appearances during the White Sox’s historically difficult 2024 season, wherein he posted a 2.70 earned run average in a meager sample size of 6.2 innings. 

Foster made his big-league debut during the abbreviated 2020 campaign, during which Chicago made the postseason and he pitched one third of an inning. The Valley, Alabama, native was 6-1 that season with a 2.20 ERA. 

He recently cleared waivers, along with fellow right-hander Jimmy Lambert, as indicated by the club’s Monday announcement. Foster does not have the requisite MLB service time to reject an assignment and maintain his salary, but that stipulation is moot in this case partly because he was a non-tender candidate this offseason. 

In his career, Foster is 9-5 in 114 regular season games with a 4.30 ERA. He has 119.1 innings on his regular season track record. It is always possible (though seemingly unlikely) he could return to the organization which drafted him in 2016 on a minor-league deal.

The #WhiteSox announced the following three roster moves: pic.twitter.com/WlcqkCW4Wi

— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) November 4, 2024