Angels Decide to Say Goodby to Their 39-Year-Old Pitcher Ken Forsch

Ken Forsch became the first casualty of the Angels’ May slump Sunday as the team announced it had waived the 39-year-old pitcher.

Forsch, a long shot to make the Angels’ 1986 roster after missing basically the past two seasons with arm injuries, earned a spot when he demonstrated this spring he could pitch without pain. He continued to pitch painlessly through April and May, but without much effectiveness.

In 10 appearances totaling 17 innings, Forsch was 0-1 with a 9.53 earned-run average. He had allowed 24 hits, 10 walks and 4 home runs. He had one save.

“The health was there. Who knows where the rest of it went?” said Angel General Manager Mike Port. “Maybe it’s because he’s in his latter 30s, maybe it’s because of the two-year layoff. I don’t know.

“We figured, knowing the kind of guy he is, that if Ken Forsch is healthy, the rest would fall into place in time. But we did not get what we were expecting.”

Forsch’s last three outings may have done him in. He allowed five runs in less than three innings against Milwaukee on May 9, two runs in one-third inning against Boston May 14 and four runs in 4 innings against New York Friday night. The Angels lost to the Yankees, 10-5.

“I wouldn’t say Friday was the clincher,” Port said. “It was just one more outing of Ken Forsch not doing the job we had been expecting.

“Who knows if he would have done it with a couple more turns? If our priority was Ken Forsch, we might have had more patience. Our priority is winning ballgames. The way the club is struggling, we need a course-correction at this time. Our overriding concern is getting things back on track.”

To replace Forsch, the Angels recalled left-handed relief pitcher Chuck Finley from their Class A affiliate in Quad Cities. Finley, 23, was 1-0 with 6 saves and a 0.00 ERA in 9 appearances.

Forsch, with a 114-113 career record, came to the Angels in April, 1981, in a trade that sent shortstop Dickie Thon to the Houston Astros. Forsch won 35 games in his first three seasons with California, going 13-11 in 1982.

His last full season was 1983, when he finished 11-12 with a 4.06 ERA. Forsch was 1-1 on April 7, 1984, when he suffered a partial tear of his right rotator cuff. He missed the rest of the season.

Bone chips in his right elbow caused Forsch to undergo surgery and miss all of the 1985 season. He came to camp this spring as a non-roster player and was given a contract only after he made the club. According to Port, the contract was not guaranteed.

“Ken is not a something-for-nothing guy,” Port said. “The contract we worked out was over-balanced with incentives, considering the injury factor. The contract was drawn up to protect all sides.”