By Sam Reeves

Who else would write that headline in 2022? Exactly, millions of other people. Look, I know I started the propaganda as a joke in 2021 when he was struggling, but now its a full movement. Matt Foster, for closer, is in full effect, baby! Is this success sustainable? Probably not. Am I asking myself easy questions so I sound smart? Absolutely. Anyway, Matt Foster was a journeyman reliever for the Sox last year, collecting those sweet airline miles for papa Jerry, going from Charlotte to Chicago like 394352 times. He battled some injuries and frankly, wasn’t very good. His changeup was flat, his fastball had no life, and he wasn’t using his breaking stuff very effectively. So what changed?

I have no idea. If you recall there was a lockout, causing offseason workouts to be, basically non-existent. Ethan Katz wasn’t able to work with any of the pitching staff until they got to spring training. Matt Foster doesn’t have a social media presence to show if he was throwing in a development like Cease was, so there really is no way to tell what, if anything, changed. He was pretty dang good in 2020 in a short season, mostly because there was no scouting report on him. He came out of nowhere, and was blowing away hitters. Then his rollercoaster 2021 put his season in Charlotte for a majority of the time.

When the 2022 season kicked off, and he made the opening roster, there were some definite doubts. He seemed to be #back, almost immediately. His fastball was back up around 95 mph, his slider start having ridiculous movement for right handers to pick up, and his changeup is being used as a secondary pitch, rather than his primary pitch. There could have been a confidence issue in 2021, and if there was, that seems to be a thing of the past. The performance he put up against Boston, facing Story, Devers, and Bogaerts, was emphatic. 3 up, 3 down, 3 strikeouts. Foster currently has a 1.23 ERA out of the pen in 14.2 IP. That’s a hell of a start to his season.

He is being relied on more in late inning situations. That really helps give guys like Graveman, Bummer, and Kelly some rest on days they need. Having a late inning presence and not needing your top guys seems kind of wild in retrospect to how the offseason money was allocated, but its a big bonus. If Matt Foster can continue on this tear, he will definitely be a big piece in the backend of that bullpen for a much needed stretch run this year.

As always: