Farrell Sees Fork in Road After Latest Angel Loss

Angel starter John Farrell stood silently on the mound Thursday night, watching Dean Palmer slowly circle the bases after his second-inning home run, and became terrified.

This was it, he told himself. It’s all over. Two rigorous years of rehabilitation, and now he was going to be released, or at least banished to the bullpen for the remainder of the season.

“I knew I was at the crossroads of my career,” Farrell said. “They weren’t going to keep watching me pitch like this. I told myself, ‘I could either fight my way through it, or fold up my tent.’

“I had nothing to lose because it couldn’t get any worse than this.”

The boxscore today will reveal that the Angels were defeated, 4-2, by the Texas Rangers at Arlington Stadium, and Farrell (2-10) once again was the losing pitcher, giving up seven hits and four runs in six innings.

What it won’t show is a gleeful Farrell believing that he might have turned around his season, and Angel Manager Buck Rodgers celebrating the occasion by publicly writing in Farrell’s name for Tuesday’s start against the Detroit Tigers.

“I saw improvement in John Farrell tonight for the first time in two months,” said Rodgers, who appeared as giddy as if Farrell had pitched a shutout. “I saw hitters get fooled tonight. I saw hitters miss pitches. Farrell finally crossed the bridge tonight.

“Right now, I’ve got him pitching against Detroit, that’s how much I was impressed with John Farrell.”

It was quite a turn of events, considering that after Palmer’s home run in the second inning, the Rangers’ second of the game, Rodgers was ready to call up Mark Holzemer from triple-A Vancouver. Farrell was going into the bullpen for the remainder of the season.

“I knew that’s what they were thinking,” said Farrell, who had given up his 17th home run in only 65 innings. “There was no sugar-coating it. I don’t hide from things that take place, or try to defend what happened.

“I told myself right there, ‘If you’re going to go down, go down with the best you’ve got.’ ”

Farrell, deciding that he had no choice, started throwing the forkball he learned from teammate Chuck Finley with reckless abandon. Instantly, he looked like a completely different pitcher. He struck out Juan Gonzalez with it. He struck out Rafael Palmeiro with it. By the time he left the game, he retired 15 of the last 18 batters he faced, including the final seven.

“You could see the sudden change in his face,” Angel catcher Ron Tingley said. “I knew this could be it for John, and he knew it, too. It’s been so frustrating to watch him go through this because I know he can pitch up here.

“But after he gave up that homer, man, he was fooling everyone with that pitch. The bottom was just dropping out of it, just like Harv’s (Bryan Harvey’s).

“It was a beautiful thing to see because he just doesn’t have the fastball he had before he got hurt, and he needs that forkball.”

Farrell, winless with a 8.16 earned-run average in his last nine starts, believes the forkball could resurrect his career that stalled for two years while he underwent two elbow operations. He realized that it was time for a change, and suddenly, he lost all fear.

“It was the most aggressive I’ve seen him throw all year,” said Chuck Hernandez, Angel pitching coach. “It was like, ‘I’m not worried about my arm anymore.’ He looked like a whole new pitcher.”

Perhaps the most amazing aspect of Farrell’s performance was that he actually had a chance to win the game. The Angels had Ranger starter Kenny Rogers teetering all night, but again, failed miserably in the clutch.