by PJ Potter
When it comes to Steven Foster’s play on the field, he is humbled by those closest to him.
As a freshman who struggled during the fall league for Hofstra, Foster was not expecting to play much in his first year of Division I baseball. “I had the jitters in the first month and I was doing too much to impress the coaches,” he noted.
The speedster out of Sachem North High School in Lake Ronkonkoma found himself batting 9th and playing center field on Opening Day against #4 UCLA in Los Angeles. He said, “Coach Russo gave me the opportunity to go out and play and I knew I had to take advantage of it.”
And that he did. Foster notched two hits in the first two games to force Coach Russo to bump him up to the 2nd spot in the lineup, where he went 2-for-4 with an RBI.
Ever since then, there was no looking back for him. The 2014 2nd team All New York State honoree finished his rookie campaign leading the team in batting average (.351), on-base percentage (.452), fielding percentage (1.000), hits (52), and stolen bases (19). He ended the season second in the nation for most stolen bases by a freshman. Foster also placed second for Hofstra in slugging percentage (.439).
Where did this transformation come from? He attributes much of his credit to his teammates and his inspiration, Gene Foster. Steven reminisced of his times as a younger ball player when his father, Gene, would take him to the field and work on all aspects of the game.
“It was hard at times, but he is the reason why I am still playing this game. He taught me life lessons and I can only wish that I will ever be half the man he is when I’m older,” Foster said.
The criminology major also had many current teammates to thank, especially shortstop Dalton Rouleau. When asked about his role as a leader on the team, Foster made sure to recognize Rouleau for everything he has done to help him and the club. He stated, “Dalton took me under his wing, like he did with all the younger guys. He not only pointed things out when I was doing something wrong or needed improvement, but also when I did something good. He always points out the positives.”
On March 31, Foster blasted his first career home run, which happened to be a grand slam that gave his team the lead. “I noticed they were playing me shallow, but I don’t blame them for doing that against a guy of my size. It was surreal, but we wouldn’t have won it if it weren’t for Eric Ferguson hitting for the cycle. We all fed off of him, like we do every game. We feed off of each other,” the 5’11” 175-pounder said.
Foster was expecting to receive the silent treatment after the rounding the bags, but was greeted with smiles and praise. His final statement was, “I’m looking forward to hitting a few more home runs over the next three years and also seeing my teammates hit some so I can cheer for them as loud as they did for me.”
