Bill Foster is the number one ranked lefthanded pitcher in my Negro League rankings. He was a remarkable pitcher. He was awfully close to Bullet Joe Rogan, the third pitcher on the list. So, he ends up the fourth pitcher on the list.
Speaking of Bullet Joe Rogan, Foster once pitched against Rogan in a doubleheader. Not one game the whole doubleheader in the 8th and 9th game of the best of nine series. Rogan pitched for the Kansas City Monarchs and Foster pitched for the Chicago American Giants. The first game the Giants won 1-0 with a run in the bottom of the ninth. In the second game Foster again pitched scoreless ball and Rogan gave up 5 runs. The game was only 5 runs due to the coming darkness.
Foster also pitched some great ballgames against Satchel Paige. A couple are mentioned in his SABR biography. A couple of 1-0 duels with each winning once. Foster said he faced Paige about 12 to 14 games, and they broke about even. However, Foster thinks he had a slight edge. To me it doesn’t matter if he does. Both were great in their prime, but Satchel was a great pitcher a lot longer. He pitched well in the American League as a very old man, for a pitcher.
Like Paige, Foster pitched in semi-pro ball in North Dakota. He pitched for Jamestown, which is even a smaller city than Bismarck. They just should have been glad they didn’t have to face the winters in North Dakota. I think Bill would have had it worse in Jamestown.
