He Might Strong-Arm Angels

It’s the old story of how are you going to keep him down on the farm?

Well, next year you’re not.

Next year, Francisco Rodriguez is ticketed to bring that live fastball and smoking slider out of the bullpen as closer Troy Percival’s setup man.

The thing is, the Angels are beginning to think next year can wait.

The way that the 20-year-old Venezuelan (and, yes, some believe he might be a little older) is performing in his September showcase now has the Angels asking:

How are you going to keep him off the playoff roster when he keeps striking out every major league hitter he faces?

The answer?

There isn’t a definitive one yet, but the possibility that the Angels will find a way to get the power right-hander on their playoff roster despite his lack of big league experience is increasing.

On Saturday, in a 6-4 loss to the Seattle Mariners that prevented the Angels from clinching a playoff berth, Rodriguez again displayed veteran composure.

He was summoned with two on and one out in the eighth and struck out Dan Wilson and Jeff Cirillo.

One year removed from Class A, Rodriguez has made three appearances spanning 2 2/3 innings, striking out seven of the eight batters he has faced.

“I’m just trying to keep doing what I’ve been doing all year,” he said of his blazing success at triple-A Salt Lake City and double-A Arkansas. “I like pitching in tough situations. I’m not at all nervous.”

There would be nothing tougher than Yankee Stadium in October.

“I think it’s going to happen,” a member of the Angel organization said, meaning Rodriguez could make the playoff roster even though he wasn’t called up before Aug. 31.

Two pitchers, Aaron Sele and Steve Green, are on the disabled list, and Rodriguez could be named as a replacement.

The choice seems to come down to putting that power arm in a bullpen without similar power aside from Percival’s or keeping Mickey Callaway in the event a starter gets knocked out early and a long man is needed. Rodriguez is beginning to make it an easy choice.

Pitching coach Bud Black wasn’t specific in regard to the playoff roster, but he said of Rodriguez:

“There’s no denying his stuff. That’s simply one of the best young arms you’ll see. We’re trying to get him battled tested.”

Of course, the Angels still have to qualify.

On Saturday, they delayed the process, doing what they have seldom done, giving a game away--and it was costly.

They are now two games behind Oakland in the American League West with seven to play, and it appears they are drawing the wild card.

A throwing error by Troy Glaus on what should have been the third out of the fifth inning helped turn two runs into six, and Scott Spiezio was picked off second in the eighth, killing a potential threat.

The Angels showed their usual fight, rallying from 6-1 before leaving the bases loaded in the ninth, but there had been bad vibes from the start.

The Mariners arranged for Dave Henderson, a ghost from the Angels’ past, to throw out the first pitch, rekindling memories of his stake-in-the-heart home run off Donnie Moore in Game 5 of the 1986 league championship series. That was the last time the Angels reached the playoffs, but Henderson wasn’t buying the possibility that his appearance contributed to their skittish play while failing to get the win that would have ended the 16-year drought.

“Hey, I had nothing to do with it,” Henderson said. “You throw a ball away like [Glaus did], you’re going to lose.”

Rodriguez couldn’t prevent it, but he kept it close.

Of his stuff, Black said, “He has an easy, smooth but powerful delivery. The fastball comes out of his hand with so much life, and there’s such tremendous snap to his slider that it’s a wipeout pitch. He had such a tremendous year in the minors that he’s going about it with a ton of confidence.”

Between Salt Lake and Arkansas, Rodriguez struck out 129 batters in 88 1/3 innings, walking only 30 in his first year as a closer.

“He matured in huge leaps and bounds,” Salt Lake pitching coach Mike Butcher said. “It was what the organization has been waiting for.”

Bill Bavasi was the general manager in 1998 when Rodriguez was signed by the Angels for $900,000, the largest bonus they have given a foreign player. Elbow and shoulder tendinitis delayed his early progress, as did a lack of focus.

Ultimately, the Angels decided last winter that Rodriguez might better retain his focus in briefer stints as a closer rather than continuing to start.

“I was upset about it,” Rodriguez said, “but the more times I pitched out of the bullpen, the stronger my arm became, and I realized it was a good decision. Pitching just one or two innings at a time I can be more aggressive.”

Percival, the ultimate in aggressiveness, shook his head and said Rodriguez is akin to lightning.

“That slider of his is absolutely dynamite,” he said. “He’s going to come in real handy. Our bullpen has been great, but to have a guy who can come in and strike out hitters in the seventh and eighth innings is big. Of course, I don’t really think he’s 20. I don’t know how old he is, but I think he’s been around.”

If there’s an age discrepancy, what’s new?

Rodriguez said he was raised by his grandparents in Caracas and has 13 brothers and sisters. His grandfather, for whom he’s named, died three years ago, Rodriguez said, “and I’m sure he’s looking down from heaven and is real proud of what I’m doing. I talk to my mom [meaning his grandmother, Isabel] two or three times a week and she’s really happy for me. Everything I do is for her.”

Whether he gets the opportunity to keep doing it in the playoffs has yet to be officially decided. He smiled and said: “I didn’t know how many chances I would have to pitch when they called me up, so I didn’t know about the playoffs. It would be great if that happens. I’ll just continue to do what I’m doing.”

So far, the hitters haven’t had a chance.