Ruhle Goes a Long Way for Angels in 6-4 Win : Veteran Pitcher Turns Back Mariners for His First Victory Since July of 1985

Some people spend their summers traveling through Europe. Then there’s Vern Ruhle. He visited oblivion, came back to tell about it and--imagine this--wound up pitching in the middle of a pennant race.

And winning.

Ruhle, a 35-year-old major league burnout victim who spent the first half of 1986 pitching anywhere they would take him--batting practice, semipro, Class A--climbed all the way back to the American League, where he started and won for the Angels Friday night, lasting seven-plus innings in a 6-4 victory over the Seattle Mariners at Anaheim Stadium.

Ruhle allowed three runs on just five singles, one a bunt and another skimming the glove of second baseman Rob Wilfong. He struck out four and walked two, keeping the Angels 1 1/2 games ahead of the Texas Rangers in the AL West.

This is the same Vern Ruhle whose career appeared over after his release last winter by the Cleveland Indians, who cut loose a pitcher only when it’s firmly established that aluminum-siding sales is his only alternative.

And that’s the way it looked for Ruhle, who had the poorest winning percentage in the majors during the previous two seasons--.136 (3-19). He was 1-9 in 1984 and 2-10 in 1985.

This season, Ruhle persisted in chasing what seemed to be merely a pipe dream. He pitched batting practice for the Angels. He made three starts with the Class A San Jose Bees, that halfway house for such rehabilitation projects as Steve Howe, Mike Norris and Darryl Sconiers. He spent a month with the Orange County A’s, a semipro team.

Finally, in June, he persuaded the Angels to sign him to a minor league contract. He spent another month in Edmonton, going 0-1 but fashioning a 3.81 earned-run average, which is headline stuff in Edmonton.

So, on July 18, the Angels, searching for help in long relief, recalled Ruhle. He pitched here and there for a while, doing nothing special and nothing too damaging, before catching Manager Gene Mauch’s eye last Sunday at Seattle, holding the Mariners scoreless through seven innings of relief.

That came in relief of rookie Ray Chadwick, the Angels’ fourth and most recent No. 5 starter, who failed to get an out in the first inning. With the same Mariners in town five days later, Mauch decided to give Ruhle a chance.

“Based on those seven innings, it seemed logical to give him a start against the same club,” Mauch explained.

And Friday night, before a crowd of 29,950, Ruhle went seven strong innings again, winning his first big league game since July 1, 1985.

This was odd enough in itself. But Ruhle (1-0) received the decisive offensive blow from shortstop Dick Schofield, who hit a three-run home run in the sixth inning. That gave Schofield 11 home runs this season--one more than Reggie Jackson.

Ruhle also received a run-scoring single by Rob Wilfong and two RBIs by Brian Downing, leaving the game in the top of the eighth inning with a 6-2 lead.

In 12 major league seasons, Ruhle had 66 victories and 85 losses. Strictly journeyman credentials. But when he was good, he gave up ground balls--dozens of them.

And that was Ruhle’s M.O. again Friday. He got 15 of his 21 outs on grounders. Including the work of relievers Gary Lucas and Doug Corbett, Angel pitchers did not allow a single outfield out.

“It was like old times for him, I’m sure, pitching in a game that means something and getting the job done,” Mauch said. “He gives the catcher a lot to work with and the batter a lot to think about.”

Donnie Moore gave Ruhle something to think about moments after the final out. “Hey Vern,” Moore yelled. “Meet the press.”

This unlikely press conference went predictably.

“This is kind of indescribable,” Ruhle said. “To be out of baseball and have the opportunity to pitch for a pennant contender is an awesome feeling. I almost had retirement forced on me.”

There were questions about San Jose. There were questions about the semipros.

“I had four shutouts for the Orange County A’s,” Ruhle pointed out with pride.

And now, a victory with the Angels. From there to here, Ruhle covered some fairly surprising territory.

Ruhle allowed two runs through seven innings. One came via a walk and a stolen base by Phil Bradley, followed by a single by Ken Phelps. The other was produced by singles by Al Davis and Phelps and a run-scoring double-play ball by Jim Presley.

Ruhle also worked four perfect innings before taking the mound for the top of the eighth. But when he allowed a leadoff single to Domingo Ramos on his 100th pitch of the evening, Mauch decided that would be enough.

Lucas came on to face four batters, without much effectiveness. He struck out John Moses but walked Bradley and yielded RBI singles to Davis and Phelps.

With the Angels’ lead sliced to 6-4, Mauch made another pitching change. On came Corbett, who retired each of the five Mariners he faced to earn his ninth save of the season.

The No. 5 position in the Angels’ starting rotation has been one of uncertainty since Day 1, with Jim Slaton, Ron Romanick, Mike Cook and Chadwick all taking on the challenge and faltering. Mauch had called Ruhle’s assignment “a temporary thing” but indicated that he earned at least one more start.

“I wouldn’t hesitate to assume that,” Mauch said.

The Angels will go on and on about the first four pitchers in their rotation, and how that quartet has brought them to first place. But Friday was special. For the first time since June, the Angels took the fifth--and won with him.

Angel Notes

Ruppert Jones was in the Angels’ starting lineup again despite an .075 batting average in his last 53 at-bats (4 hits). “There are two ways to get a player out of a slump,” Manager Gene Mauch said. “You can hit him out of it or you can sit him out of it. I’m going to hit him out of it, if I can. I don’t forget easily. I don’t forget the big runs he scored for us early in the year.” Jones, who hasn’t had more than one hit in a game since July 4, has seen his average drop from .263 to .228 in the last three weeks. He had a similar second-half slide in 1985, batting .212 in August and .090 in September. “That’s probably playing with him mentally,” Angel hitting coach Moose Stubing said. “It’s not fatigue; he’s as strong as a bull. He’s uppercutting the ball and he knows it. If he starts using all the fields and starts driving the ball to left-center, he’ll get the feeling back. He’s a streak hitter and he could start another one that’d last three or four weeks. This is just a tough time for him.” Jones took a small, first step on the road back during the second inning, beating out a dribbler he cued down the third-base line. He later walked in the fourth inning and singled to right field in the sixth, scoring on Dick Schofield’s three-run home run. . . . The Mariners made two roster moves Friday, placing pitcher Jim Beattie on the disabled list and demoting outfielder Ricky Nelson to their Triple-A affiliate in Calgary. This marks Beattie’s second stint on the disabled list as he attempts to recover from 1985 rotator cuff surgery. He was 0-6 with a 6.02 earned-run average in nine appearances this season and was originally scheduled to pitch Sunday. Mark Langston (9-8) will take his place, facing the Angels’ Mike Witt.