Elbow Injury Ends Turnbow’s Season

A “twinge” in Derrick Turnbow’s elbow turned into a season-ending injury Monday, as the highly regarded Angel pitching prospect was found to have a broken bone in his right forearm.

Turnbow, whose fastball was clocked once this spring at 98 mph, suffered the injury Thursday night while pitching for double-A Arkansas against Tulsa. The right-hander left the game in the sixth inning and flew to Los Angeles on Sunday to be examined by Lewis Yocum, Angel physician.

X-rays revealed the fracture, and a brace was put on Turnbow’s arm. Turnbow, who was rated the Angels’ seventh-best prospect by Baseball America, returned to his home in Tennessee and will not pitch again this season. No timetable was set for his recovery.

“I know [this type of injury] is rare, but he’s a young guy, so youth is on his side,” General Manager Bill Stoneman said. “If this thing mends OK, I would hope he’d be resilient enough to resume his career. We’re extremely hopeful Derrick will be able to bounce back.”

Turnbow, 23, was considered such a valuable prospect that the Angels carried him in their bullpen for the entire 2000 season, even though he wasn’t ready for the big leagues.

Had the Angels tried to send him to the minor leagues last year, the Philadelphia Phillies, from whom the Angels plucked Turnbow as a Rule 5 selection, could have reclaimed him.

Turnbow pitched mostly in long relief, in games with lopsided scores, going 0-0 with a 4.74 earned-run average in 24 appearances. But by late September, with the injury-racked Angels still in the division race, he started a key game in Texas, blanking the Rangers for 3 2/3 innings of a 7-0 Angel victory.

The Angels wanted Turnbow to start for an entire season at Arkansas, but with his improving fastball and a sharp curve, he was considered potential closer material. He was 0-0 with a 2.57 ERA, 11 strikeouts and five walks in 14 innings at Arkansas.

*

A strong September in 2000, an even better spring training in 2001 and two superb regular-season starts this month seemed to cure pitcher Ramon Ortiz of what ailed him last season.

Manager Mike Scioscia raved about Ortiz’s command, his composure, and his ability to deal with adversity as the young right-hander quieted a lethal Texas lineup in his first two starts, limiting the Rangers to four runs on nine hits in 14 1/3 innings of two Angel victories.

But Ortiz appears to have fallen into some of the same bad habits that got him demoted to triple A last May. After Ortiz was tagged for five runs and seven hits in six innings of a 5-1 loss to the Oakland Athletics on April 17, catcher Bengie Molina said Ortiz was “kind of lost, not as focused.”

And after Ortiz’s fourth start, in which he gave up five runs and 10 hits in five innings of a 5-0 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Sunday, backup catcher Jorge Fabregas described Ortiz as “a hyper guy” who forgot signs and deviated from the game plan.

“He’s got great stuff, and I love catching him, but he’s a hard guy to catch,” Fabregas said. “He’s a hard guy to talk to.”

The Angels are expected to be a little more patient with Ortiz this season than they were in 2000 because he has shown he can pitch consistently over a long period of time.

But if Steve Green, who impressed the Angels in his major league debut against Oakland on April 7, continues to excel at triple-A Salt Lake--he threw a three-hitter with nine strikeouts and no walks Thursday--and Ortiz continues to struggle, the Angels could make a switch.

*

As expected, the Angels called up infielder Jose Fernandez from Salt Lake to replace the injured Glenallen Hill. Hill was put on the disabled list Sunday because of a strained chest muscle and could be sidelined as long as seven weeks.

Fernandez, who can play third base, first base and designated hitter, hit .382 (26 for 68) with six home runs, five doubles, 20 runs batted in and 18 runs in 18 games at Salt Lake. To make room for Fernandez on the 40-man roster, the Angels designated reliever Rendy Espina for assignment.

ON DECK

* Opponent--Cleveland Indians, three games.

* Site--Jacobs Field, Cleveland.

* Today--4 p.m.

* Radio--KLAC (570), KMXN (94.3 FM), KMPC (1540), XPRS (1090).

* Records--Angels 7-12, Indians 11-6.

* Record vs. Indians (2000)--3-6.

TODAY

ANGELS’

SCOTT SCHOENEWEIS

(1-1, 3.49 ERA)

vs.

INDIANS’

BARTOLO COLON

(2-1, 3.64 ERA)

* Update--The Angels managed only five runs and 25 hits while being swept in a four-game series at Seattle, and the task doesn’t get any easier. Jacobs Field may be more of a hitter’s park than Safeco Field, but the Angels must face the Indians’ top two pitchers, Colon and Chuck Finley, as well as impressive rookie C.C. Sabathia. Finley and Sabathia are left-handers, and the Angels are 2-7 against lefty starters this season. Cleveland’s Juan Gonzalez is batting .348 with seven homers and 19 RBIs.

* Wednesday, 4 p.m.--Ismael Valdes (0-2, 3.29) vs. C.C. Sabathia (2-0, 4.86).

* Thursday, 4 p.m.--Pat Rapp (0-3, 6.75) vs. Chuck Finley (1-2, 6.45).