Forster Good Enough, Slim Enough for Angels : He Signs a One-Year Contract and Becomes Club’s Only Left-Handed Pitcher

The Angels signed veteran left-handed relief pitcher Terry Forster to a one-year contract Wednesday, but before David Letterman and the owners of the Taco Tico near Dodger Stadium get too excited, it must be noted that it was a rather svelte Forster who showed up for a tryout at Anaheim Stadium.

At 232 pounds, Forster is barely even a tube of goo these days, which won’t help the late night comedy writers. And he doesn’t eat meat--or even dairy products--anymore, so his new teammates won’t be treated to the 100 tacos he used to bring to the Dodger clubhouse before most home games.

Forster spent two weeks at the spa in La Costa after last Thanksgiving and he took the program to heart . . . and to stomach.

He showed off his new form at spring training, but the Atlanta Braves were less than impressed with his pitching form. On April 1, Forster and three other veteran pitchers--Pascual Perez, Rick Camp and Len Barker--were released. Forster calls it the April Fools’ Day Massacre.

“I was shocked,” Forster said, lacing up a pair of shoes he borrowed from Reggie Jackson for the tryout. “I thought I threw extremely well last year (he was 2-3 with one save and a 2.28 earned-run average in 46 appearances) and I threw well this spring.”

Forster said he approached this spring as he always does, pitching “all sliders one inning and all sinkers the next inning.” He allowed two runs in 10 innings.

“Then I pick up the paper and the Braves are saying I’d lost my fastball and couldn’t strike anyone out anymore,” he said, shaking his head in dismay.

The Angels, of course, will take a southpaw who can get any kind of outs. When Forster puts on his No. 51 Angel uniform today, he’ll be the only left-hander on the staff, filling the spot vacated by John Candelaria, who Wednesday underwent successful arthroscopic surgery to remove bone spurs and scar tissue from his left elbow.

Jackson sort of summed up his team’s predicament when he handed Forster his cleats.

“If we had three or four lefties, I wouldn’t have let you have these,” he said. “But, hell, if you can still feed yourself left-handed, we’ll take you.”

After watching him throw for 20 minutes in the Angel bullpen, Manager Gene Mauch, General Manager Mike Port and pitching coach Marcel Lachemann figured that while the 15-year veteran may be less prolific with a fork these days, he’s still proficient with the sinker, slider and, yes, even the fastball.

“If his command of his stuff is as good as his stuff, I know damn well he can get big league hitters out,” Mauch said after the tryout. “There was a lot more there than I was led to believe.”

Port said that he too was “pleasantly surprised with Terry’s performance,” and felt he could be “a tremendous asset to our pitching staff.”

Forster’s agent, Mark Polan, wasn’t surprised a bit.

“We’re really confident . . . or really stupid,” said Polan, sitting in the dugout while Forster threw in the bullpen. “This was his best spring in five years. He was throwing free and easy. I figured they’d have him throw one pitch and then sign him.”

Actually, it didn’t take much more than that. Less than two hours after arriving at Anaheim Stadium, Forster was at a press conference being introduced as the newest Angel. He reportedly signed for a base salary less than a quarter of his contract with the Braves (about $480,000), but Polan said incentive clauses could bring the total up to “the amount he deserves to be paid.”

The Angels also have an option to sign Forster for 1987.

“I’m happy as hell to be back in Southern California,” Forster said. “I don’t like the circumstances-- you hate to see a guy get hurt--but I’m happy to have a job again. This was the first time in 16 years that I wasn’t on a major league roster on opening day and it was pretty traumatic.”

Forster, who began his career with the Chicago White Sox, also played with the Pittsburgh Pirates for one year (1977) before a five-year stint with the Dodgers that ended in 1983 when Atlanta signed him as a free agent. He’s 16th on the all-time saves list with 122.

He has stayed active the last two weeks by pitching batting practice to the Dunwoody High School team in Dunwoody, Ga.

“I feel strong,” Forster said, “I’m in good shape.”

Too good, if you ask Polan.

“He looks too skinny,” Polan said. “I’m glad he’s back, but he’s no fun to go out with anymore. All he eats are vegetables . . . stuff he’d go months without eating before. I’m glad he’s back, but I hope I never see another cherry tomato.”