But on August 14, 1887 while pitching against the Cincinnati Reds for St. Louis, Foutz was hit by a ball and suffered a broken thumb on his throwing hand. Sidelined for nine weeks, when Foutz eventually returned to pitching‚ he was ineffective and his pitching career was virtually ended. While he was pitching, Foutz won 114 games over a four-year span from 1884–1887, with a career high of 41 in 1886. He ended up with a 147-66 record, which is a .690 percentage and is tied for third-best ever. In 1887, Foutz achieved a rare feat when he won 20 or more games as a pitcher (25) and drove in 100 or more runs as a hitter (108).