Turk Farrell

Richard Joseph Farrell

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 4", Weight 220 lb.

• Debut September 21, 1956
• Final Game September 17, 1969
• Born April 8, 1934 in Boston, MA USA
• Died June 10, 1977 in Great Yarmouth, England

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[edit] Biographical Information

Before the 1953 season Turk Farrell was signed by the Philadelphia Phillies as an amateur free agent. The nineteen-year-old was assigned to the class A Schenectady Blue Jays where over a two-year span (1953-1954), he built an 18-18 record and a 3.30 ERA. He spent 1955 in the International League with the Syracuse Chiefs, going 12-12 with a 3.94 ERA and in 1956 he was with the Miami Marlins, going 12-6 with a 2.50 ERA.

Turk got a late-season look by the Phillies in 1956 and lost his only decision, but set the groundwork for a 14-year run in the major leagues. Turk was one of the young Philadelphia Phillies pitchers of the late 1950s, along with Jack Meyer and Jim Owens, dubbed the "Dalton Gang" for their fun-loving late-hour escapades. It was once said of Farrell by a teammate, "When he loses, he loses his temper, but when he wins he's the life of the party." After one tough defeat he broke a mirror with his fist in a Milwaukee, WI bar explaining, "I looked in the mirror and didn't like what I saw so I threw a punch."

Phillies fans liked what they saw of the 6'4" hard-throwing rookie right-hander in 1957 when he was 10-2 with 10 saves and a 2.38 ERA in 52 appearances out of the bullpen. On September 3rd, Farrell was the winning pitcher for the Phils in the last of fifteen home games the Brooklyn Dodgers played at the Jersey City, NJ Roosevelt Stadium, 3-2 in twelve innings. After four more seasons of relief work with the Phils, "Turk" was traded to the Dodgers early in 1961.

Farrell was then selected by the Houston Colt 45s in the 1962 expansion draft and converted to a starter. He pitched well but suffered "tough defeats" for the first-year club, because of lack of run support, as he was 10-20 in 1962 despite an ERA of just above 3.00. After three more years as a .500 hurler with Houston he returned to the Phillies to wind down a 14-year National League career, working in 150 more games out of the Phils' bullpen from 1967 to 1969, finishing with a major league record of 106-111 plus 83 saves and a 3.45 ERA.

Turk had spent a total of 19 seasons in pro baseball and his minor league stats show a 46-39 record with a 4.04 ERA. Farrell was now 37 years old and decided to move on to other things.

Turk was working on an offshore oil rig off Great Britain in the North Sea when he was killed in an automobile accident in Great Yarmouth, England, on June 10, 1977, at age 43.

[edit] Notable Achievements

• 4-time NL All-Star (1958, 1962, 1964 & 1965)
• 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 4 (1962, 1963 & 1965)
• 200 Strikeouts Seasons: 1 (1962)

[edit] Sources

Baseball-Reference.com
Baseball Players of the 1950s
SABR MILB Database:page

[edit] Related Sites