Jim Foster Baseball Camps: Camp Staff


Camp Staff


Jim Foster – Head Coach



Jim Foster enters his fourth season as head coach of the Rhode Island baseball program in 2008-09. In his first year at the helm of the program, Foster led the team to a 34-16 record, including a 19-6 finish in the Atlantic 10. The Rams claimed their fourth-consecutive regular-season title and had six different individuals named to the All-Conference teams, including 2006 Atlantic 10 Pitcher of the Year Steve Holmes, who led the nation with a 1.30 ERA.

A native of Warwick, R.I. Foster served as Rhode Island's pitching coach and also worked with the team's catchers prior to his appointment as head coach. The Rams' earned run average ranked them in the top-35 nationally in both 2005 and 2006 as three of Foster's pitchers went on to sign professional contracts in the two-year span (Zack Zuercher/St. Louis Cardinals/2005, Mick Lefort/Chicago Cubs/2005 and Steve Holmes/New York Mets/2006). For his efforts, Foster was nominated for the 2005 NCAA Pitching Coach of the Year award.

 

Also in 2005, Foster helped lead Rhode Island to the Atlantic 10 Championship title as well as the program's first trip to the NCAA Regionals, finishing the season with a 34-21 record (18-6 in the Atlantic 10).

 

Foster was an All-Big East and two-time All-New England selection at Providence. He was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles and spent seven years with the organization. He also played in the Arizona Diamondbacks, Anaheim Angels and Chicago White Sox farm systems. He was named Baseball Weekly's Minor League Catcher of the Year in 1997 and was named to the Topps All-Rookie Team in 1993.

 

Foster retired after spending 10 years in the minor leagues. He then spent two years as an assistant coach at Brown where he served as hitting coach and worked with the team's catchers.

 




Steve Breitbach – Assistant Coach, Recruiting Coordinator



Steven Breitbach enters his sixth season as an assistant coach at Rhode Island in 2008-09. Breitbach helped the Rams to a school-record 35 wins in 2004, including a school-best 20 conference wins on their way to the 2004 Atlantic 10 regular season crown and the A10 East Division title. The 20-4 conference record marked just the second time an Atlantic 10 team won 20 league games in a season.

Breitbach played two years at Berry College and two years at Oglethorpe University. While at Oglethorpe, Breitbach was a team captain both years and was selected to the 2000 SCAC All Tournament team. After completing his career at Oglethorpe, Breitbach became an assistant coach at his alma mater.

 

Breitbach was the infield, hitting, and conditioning coach during his three year stint at Oglethorpe. In Breitbach's first year of coaching he helped guide the Stormy Petrels to the 2002 SCAC Eastern Division title. During his years at Oglethorpe, Breitbach worked many baseball camps for children with Greg Maddux, Andruw Jones, and Kevin Millwood.

 

Breitbach has several duties with the Rams, including hitting coach and recruiting coordinator.

 






Eric Cirella - Assistant Coach, Summer Camp Director




Eric Cirella, a Rhode Island native, enters his third season with the Rams in 2008-09. Cirella was a four-year stand-out baseball player at Salve Regina, settings records for career hits (220) and highest batting average (.446). He was an All-Conference and Academic All-Conference member all four years. He was awarded the Brother Michael Reynolds Award in 2004 for outstanding accomplishment in academics and athletics and was SRU's Male Athlete of the Year in 2004-2005.

Cirella was a three-time Academic All-American (2003-2005) and was named ESPN the Magazine Academic All-American of the Year in 2005. He also was an All-New England First Team pick and was earned Rawlings ABCA All-American recognition in both 2004 (SS) and 2005 (OF).

 

As the national leader in batting average (.504) and bases on balls (49) his senior year, Cirella originally signed a contract with the Rockford Riverhawks of the Frontier League while eventually landing with the New Haven County Cutters of the Can Am League in the summer of 2006.

 

Cirella graduated Magna cum Laude from Salve Regina University with a B.S. in Financial Management in May of 2005. He was a member of the Dean's List all eight semesters and graduated with an impressive 3.87 GPA. Cirella brings an incredible athletic background and an extensive knowledge of the game to the University of Rhode Island.

 

He is currently a graduate student at URI in Communication Studies and has spent the past summer coaching the Green Bay Bullfrogs in the Northwoods League.

 

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Idris Liasu - Assistant Coach