The Angels ensure a promising prospect's future, covering his salary and medical needs after a devastating accident. His recovery journey unfolds.
In early September, Los Angeles Angels outfield prospect Rio Foster was involved in a serious car accident. The car, with three other passengers inside, flipped and crashed into a pole, ejecting Foster from the vehicle and leaving him in critical condition.
Foster suffered a fractured skull, facial fractures, and a brain injury as a result of the accident. He has since been transported back to his home in Atlanta, Georgia, where he continues to recover.
The Angels have committed to insuring Foster and his family through the calendar year, Foster’s mother, Iris Cleveland, told The Athletic’s Sam Blum on Friday. The club will also continue to pay Foster’s salary in 2026. The news of the continued insurance came just two days after Blum’s initial story of the Angels’ non-commitment to insure Foster.
“Them giving me another year — allowing me to figure some things out, that really, really helped,” said Cleveland. “I was starting to feel the pressure. It eases the stress.”
Just the morning before the accident, Foster was named Northwest League Player of the Month for August. That month, Foster hit .333 with a 1.112 OPS. Seven of Foster’s 10 home runs on the season came in August. In the last game of the month, he smashed a go-ahead three-run shot in the seventh inning against the Spokane Indians, his third of the series.
The Angels selected Foster in the 16th round of the 2023 MLB Amateur Draft. In 177 games in the minors since joining the organization, he has recorded a slashline of .279/.402/.446.
The driver of the vehicle was 23-year-old Ashante Sanders-Jackson. Sanders-Jackson was arrested on three felony counts of vehicular assault, with her bail set at $200,000, according to a report by the Tri-City Herald, citing court documents.
The GoFundMe page for Foster remains, and it has received over $85,000 of its $90,000 goal so far. Foster’s unlikely to return to playing baseball as his and his family’s focus is on getting back to full health to live an ordinary life once again. His story serves as a poignant reminder of the fragility of life and the profound impact a game like baseball can have.