Jim Foster - Head Baseball Coach - Baseball Coaches

Jim Foster

Title:
Head Baseball Coach
Email:
armybaseball@westpoint.edu
Phone:
4938

Jim Foster was announced as Army’s head baseball coach on June 23, 2016.

He brought 14 years of collegiate baseball experience to West Point, including nine as a head coach at the University of Rhode Island. Prior to coming to Army, he spent two seasons as the associate head coach at Boston College, working with the pitchers and catchers.

Army picked up where they left off in 2021 after their season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Under Foster's guidance the Cadets captured theri third consecutive Patriot League title and appeared in the NCAA Regional round for the third time in Coach Foster's tenure. Seven Cadets earned spots on All-Patriot League teams while Sam Ruta and Tim Simoes took home the league's Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards, respectively.

The 2019 Black Knights claimed their second consecutive Patriot League Championship under Foster's watch, defeating rival Navy for the second consecutive season to claim the league crown. Seven Cadets were named to the All-Patriot League team with Jacob Hurtubise being named the league's top defender. It was an accolade filled year for Hurtubise, who garnered ABCA/Rawlings All-American honors before being selected in the MLB Draft by the Seattle Mariners. The accolades would continue for the Black Knights in the shortened 2020 season, as Hurtubise was named Patriot League Preseason Player of the Year and Anthony Giachin earned Collegiate Baseball Second Team Pre-Season All American honors.

In 2018, Foster led the Black Knights to their Patriot-League leading eighth conference crown after defeating Navy two games to none in the league championship series. Army didn’t disappoint in the NCAA Regionals either as it took down its host and nationally ranked opponent N.C. State in its opening game 5-1. That victory was Army's fourth ever in the regional round and first overall in an opener during the tournament.

That 2018 squad littered the program’s records book as well, accounting for 15 top-10 marks as a team and 10 individually. Army saw a conference-leading eight cadet-athletes earn All-Patriot League honors along with two garnering major awards in Jon Rosoff (player of the year) and Anthony Giachin (rookie of the year). Rosoff finished third in the conference with a .340 average, while his 73 hits led the league. The Durham, N.C., native also compiled a conference-best 47 runs batted in. Another tool to Army’s success this season was its aggressive nature on the base paths. For nearly the entire season, sophomore Jacob Hurtubise led the nation in stolen bases. He finished his second year setting a program record with 42 steals, while his 50 walks drawn were also an Academy record. Lastly, senior Matt Ball garnered Google Cloud Academic All-America First Team praise, while Giachin was tabbed a Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American.

In his first year at the helm of the Cadets in 2017, Foster helped the Black Knights improve by nine games, including four in league play, to take Army to its first Patriot League tournament since 2014. He coached two cadet-athletes to All-Patriot League First Team nods and two others to All-Patriot League Second Team praise. While taking the reins of the pitchers, Foster guided his pitching crew to a program-record 402 strikeouts. On the offensive side of things, his 2017 squad finished tied for sixth all-time in program history with 267 runs batted in, seventh in runs (307) and hits (460), ninth in home runs with 29, and tied for 10th in wins with 25.

During his last year at Boston College, the Eagles received a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2009. They won the Oxford Regional as a No. 3 seed to advance to the Super Regionals. It was Boston College's first trip to the Super Regionals in school history, and the Eagles fell one win shy after falling to No. 3 Miami in the best-of-three series. Boston College finished the year with 35 wins, the most for the program since 2005. The Eagles were 22-33 the season before Foster arrived in Chestnut Hill.

Foster led a pitching staff to a 3.83 team earned run average in 2016 with 431 strikeouts in 507.2 innings pitched. At the top of the staff was junior right-hander Justin Dunn. He was named to the Baseball America All-America Third Team and was selected 19th overall by the New York Mets in Major League Baseball's 2016 First-Year Players Draft. He finished the year with a 2.06 ERA, which was fourth on the Eagles' all-time list for a single-season.

In his first season leading the pitching staff at Boston College, the Eagles recorded a 4.41 ERA. Their 433 strikeouts ranked fourth in BC record books and the 12 saves tied for second. Eagles' opponents hit just .255 against them, good for third in the BC records. The BC staff allowed 184 walks, good for second-fewest in the ACC, and 455 hits, third-fewest in the league. The Eagles' 8.20 strikeouts per game ranked sixth in the league.

Right-handers John Gorman and Jeff Burke were both taken in the 2015 MLB First-Year Players Draft as Gorman went in the 31st round Burke in the 32nd. Gorman's 77 strikeouts in 2015 tied for 10th on BC's single-season list. Gorman was named to the ACC All-Academic Team while righty Eric Stone, who went 5-0 with a 2.38 ERA, was named to the NEIBA All-New England Team. Foster also tutored Mike King to pitch the Eagles' first complete-game shutout since 2003 as he allowed just one hit to No. 24 Georgia Tech.

In nine seasons as the head coach at Rhode Island, Foster became all-time winningest coach in program history, amassing a 268-230-3 (.538) record.

He led the Rams to six consecutive 30-win seasons, from 2008 to 2013, for the first time in program history, and took them to eight consecutive Atlantic-10 Championship appearances from 2006 to 2013. He coached 28 all-conference selections, 21 All-New England selections, three All-Americans, three A-10 Pitchers of the Year and two A-10 Players of the Year.

In 2013, the Rams earned the Atlantic-10 Regular-Season Co-Championship title, garnering their 11th straight bid to the conference tournament. In 2011 Foster was named Atlantic-10 Coach of the Year after the Rams went 31-22 overall and 16-8 in A-10 play. In 2009 the Rams set a URI record with 37 wins, including three over ranked teams (No. 8 Miami, No. 11 Oklahoma and No. 25 Ohio State), earning him CollegeBaseballInsider.com National Coach of Year Honorable Mention and New England Intercollegiate Baseball Association (NEIBA) Coach of the Year honors.

In 2006, Foster's first year at the helm, the Rams claimed the A-10 regular-season title with a mark of 19-6 and posted an overall record of 34-16. Seven players earned all-conference honors, including Atlantic-10 Player of the Year Steve Holmes, who led the nation with a 1.30 ERA.

Foster served as the Rams' pitching coach and worked the catchers in 2005 prior to his appointment as head coach. That season, URI's ERA ranked in the top 30 nationally, earning him an NCAA Pitching Coach of the Year nomination. The same year, the Rams won the Atlantic-10 Championship, receiving their first-ever NCAA Tournament berth.

The Warwick, R.I., native was an All-Big East and two-time All-New England selection at Providence where he played under current Navy head coach Paul Kostacopoulos. He was drafted as a catcher in the 22nd round by the Baltimore Orioles and spent seven years with the organization. He also played in the farm systems for Arizona, Anaheim and the Chicago White Sox. In 1997, he was named Baseball Weekly's Minor League Catcher of the Year and in 1993, to the Topps All-Rookie Team.

After 10 years in the minor leagues, he worked for two seasons as an assistant coach at Brown, where he served as the hitting coach and worked with the catchers.

Foster and his wife Narelle have four children.