Ex-Cubs pitcher and fan Kevin Foster dies

CHICAGO, Oct. 14 (UPI) -- Former Chicago Cubs pitcher Kevin Foster died of cancer at the age of 39, his family said.

The Chicago Tribune reported Tuesday Foster's brother, Mark, announced Monday the five-year Major League veteran had died of renal cell carcinoma during the weekend at a hospital in Oklahoma.

Foster, who grew up in the Chicago suburbs, broke into the big leagues with Philadelphia in 1993 and was traded to his beloved Cubbies the following year.

"It was like a dream for him when he got to play for the Cubs," Mark Foster told the Trib. "We used to come down on the L (elevated train) to watch games at Wrigley Field as kids, and now he's pitching there."

Foster compiled a 32-28 record for the Cubs from 1994 to 1998. A highlight was getting a win that snapped Chicago's 14-game losing streak that opened the 1997 season.

An arm injury ended Foster's career and he moved to Oklahoma where he became a truck driver following a brief comeback attempt in the Texas Rangers farm system.