Danny Farquhar has told the story of the scariest night of his life a few times by now.
He emerged on the other side of a ruptured brain aneurysm not just alive, but with the same infectious personality and quick laugh he had before, with only the presence of a surgical scar and a White Sox batting helmet to protect his still-healing skull.
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But recently, he’s been wrapped up in something that hopefully will become far more memorable than the sight of him being rushed out of the White Sox dugout: his comeback.
Farquhar is not going to be medically cleared to pitch this season, and the White Sox have yet to make any decision about retaining their rights to him in 2019. But he has been throwing, and when I reached out to him to ask how it was going, he provided an update in the best way he could, with a video.
The following conversation is edited for length, but left in the Q&A format so you can get a vibe for how fun Farquhar is to talk to.
James Fegan: So what is your routine these days?
Danny Farquhar: It is Mondays and Tuesdays, I’m going to the gym and throwing. One of the days I have my weighted-ball program and one of the days I throw a bullpen. Right now my catcher went to college, so I put little pieces of tape on the wall and I’m throwing against the wall for my bullpen, which is pretty funny. It’s something cool, and I’m throwing hard. I’m throwing actually 90 mph off the turf mound in a non-game situation, which I’ve never done before. My fastest pitch pre-brain surgery is 88 mph. Obviously it’s a non-game situation, no adrenaline, so that’s exciting. I sent you the video of 107 mph and that was the fastest I’ve ever thrown a baseball, well, it’s a three-ounce ball. It’s an underweighted baseball. It’s exciting to get all these personal records.
Wednesdays are my men’s league golf days. I golf every Wednesday. I do a little bit of weighted-ball holds at home.
Thursday and Friday is working out, bullpen, weighted-ball program. Saturday is just weighted-ball holds, and Sunday is golf.
It depends on if I do the bullpen Monday or Tuesday. So if it’s Monday, I throw one Thursday. If Tuesday, then Friday. Two bullpens per week.
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JF: Are you the dominant player of your men’s league?
Farquhar: Not. Even. Close. I’m middle of the pack. It goes by handicap. I’m a nine handicap, so basically I have to give somebody who’s a 10 handicap, I have to give them a stroke. There’s actually a guy out there who is a plus-seven handicap. I don’t know what he’s doing in a men’s league, but this guy has to give me 16 strokes when we’re playing.
JF: [James] Shields said he was looking forward to playing you again.
Farquhar: Oh, I would love to play with Shields! He lives not too far from here. Yeah, I’d love to go play golf with Shieldsy.
JF: I don’t know his handicap, though.
Farquhar: He’s a nine handicap, too. We played against each other when we were in Kansas City. He hits the ball a lot further than me. I have to be on my game to try to compete with him.
JF: You mention that you’re at 90 mph, so it’s always been typical that you sit a lot higher in a game than you ever do in a bullpen?
Farquhar: Oh, absolutely. I’ve even done it as far as my last pitch of warmups, throw it as hard as I can — you know when the catcher’s throwing it down to second — throw it as hard as I can. A lot of minor-league stadiums have their radar gun on all the time, and it shows up 88 mph and you’re like “What the heck? I threw it as hard as I could!”
Then the batter steps in the box and first pitch, you’re like nice and easy strike one, down and away, and it’s 93 mph. So it’s something for me at least, adrenaline kicks in, the batter is coming after you, whatever the situation is. So yeah, 90 mph is my personal record, and now we’re trying to get 91 mph.
JF: Is that typical for everyone?
Farquhar: I don’t know. I haven’t really talked to people about that. I’m curious now. When you’re in the offseason training and stuff, a lot of people don’t like to be radar-gunned. The guys I train with at least don’t like to be radar-gunned, where I do because I like to see where I’m at. If I was a betting man, I’d be willing to say that they’re low just like me and then it pumps back up in the games.
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JF: Obviously what you’re doing right now is such a different situation where you’re throwing when you normally would be playing, but are you doing something differently to increase your velocity? Are you attacking it like offseason work? How does this compare to your normal routine?
Farquhar: Yeah, I’m attacking it like offseason, like I’m trying to get ready for spring. It’s almost kind of an advantage for me. My wife [Lexie] put it in perspective for me. She said most people on the DL are rehabbing their shoulder, they’re rehabbing their elbow, they’re rehabbing their knee, whatever their situation is, and I’m full-go. I can do everything.
The only thing holding me back right now from playing in a baseball game is my skull hasn’t healed. They’re going to check it in late December with another CAT scan. They’re 100 percent sure it’s going to be healed by that point, but the CAT scan gives out some radiation so they don’t want to continue to do CAT scans, so they’re going to do a definitive one by the end of December to make sure it’s healed, and then I’ll be full-go.
I don’t know if you saw Carlos Rodón get hit with a line drive in a rehab assignment. It was terrifying. I think I was just out of the hospital. Just seeing that was terrifying. They’re protecting me from that. If it was up to me I’d be out there playing, but I respect the doctors’ wishes. Obviously no one will let me play without a doctor’s consent. That’s what’s holding me back right now is my skull.
JF: It was such a Rodón reaction because he put his hat back on and wanted the ball and wanted to pitch.
Farquhar: That was unbelievable! Watching him was unbelievable! He bounces out of that. It was incredible.
JF: When you’re fully healed will you still wear the hard helmet?
Farquhar: My wife is all about it. I’m not set either way. I don’t think I’ve come to a decision either way yet, but we’ll see. I train with it. I do all my throwing with it on. I do a lot of stuff. I golf with it on, in case somebody hits a golf ball at me. I don’t know, we’ll see.
JF: Have you grown attached to it or think it’s a good-luck charm?
Farquhar: Not at all. It’s starting to get a little stinky from all my sweat. Every time I put it on I’m like “Ugghhhhhh.” I’m going to have to re-do the padding.
I do have to be super careful playing with my kids. When we’re at the pool and there are kids playing around, I’m super cautious and my wife is super cautious.
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JF: You mentioned 107 mph is a personal best. Is that blowing away anything you’ve ever done before? Are you in uncharted territory as far as how hard you’re throwing?
Farquhar: I’ve always done weighted-ball programs but I never got a chance to do the actual radar gun to my throws. It’s kind of a made-up program. It’s not a Driveline [program] or anything crazy like that. It’s bits and pieces of what other players have done throughout my career and I just kind of do what’s best for my arm to make my arm feel great.
I can guarantee you I wasn’t throwing that hard before. Just because you can see the step and the effort level that it takes. The effort level that it takes to throw 100 mph is incredible, and then the fact that I threw 107 mph, it was kind of shocking. It was shocking to the strength coach, it was shocking to me.
JF: There was a video that got famous of [Michael] Kopech doing the same thing and hitting 110 mph and he basically throws it as hard as anyone can imagine. If you keep working at it, could you get to that level?
Farquhar: Dude! I don’t know! I hope so! He sits at 100 mph. I don’t know if I could ever do that. I do remember Kopech throwing 110 mph, which is pretty cool that I’m only three miles back from him. I know that I’ll get a really cool shirt from my gym [Victory Athletics] that’s given out for the athlete of the month. If I can achieve 108 mph, I get a shirt, so that’s my goal is to get to 108 mph. I need my “Earned, Never Given” shirt. I haven’t been athlete of the month. I’ve been there like four years now. I’m still trying to get to that point.
JF: What kind of gym do you go to where a major league pitcher doesn’t get athlete of the month?
Farquhar: Right?! It’s a very baseball-specific gym. I’ve got some records there. I’m second place in my vertical: 34 1/2 inches and I’m like at the bottom of the list for my 20-yard dash, but they have little lasers that measure it and I think I ran a 2.73, so I think I’m fifth on that list. But I have none of the records for weightlifting.
A fan holds a sign in support of White Sox relief pitcher Danny Farquhar during an April 24 game at Guaranteed Rate Field. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune/TNS via Getty Images)
JF: Is there a goal you’re working toward, or are you trying to stay busy?
Farquhar: I hit my goal hitting 90 mph, so now I have to re-adjust that one. I’m going to say that by December, I’m going to try to hit 92 mph and when I hit 92 mph I’m going to have to re-adjust the goal as well. I’m basically shut down from baseball until next year, so just make sure I’m healthy, mobile, flexible, the whole deal. No big goals besides velocity.
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JF: I have some great unused quotes from you about how well your changeup was working at the start of the season. Do you work on your off-speed or just maxing out?
Farquhar: I’m working on my curveball. My curveball was never a great pitch but it was that get-me-over curveball. It’s still there. I’m kind of messing with it with speeds. I’ve thrown a couple in the 50s, kinda messing around, then a couple in the 70s. My changeup has been pretty good as it was. It’s not as consistent as it was. During the season it was just drop every pitch. I would say two-thirds of them drop.
I’ve got this time to fine-tune the mechanics, but my fastball location is very good and yeah I think the changeup is the last thing to come.
JF: You gave me a lesson about fastball carry and vertical drop this spring, are you monitoring for that?
Farquhar: We don’t have that kind of technology. The technology they have can tell me side-to-side movement and I think there’s a drop feature on it. I don’t think I want to get on that one so much. I know they got stuff in Arizona in the White Sox. They’ve got a lab where they can tell me on the Trackman. That’ll tell me everything.
We haven’t really talked about. I’d love to get out there to Arizona and get coaches’ eyes on me and make sure they’re seeing everything good and hop on that Trackman and see how things are moving, but it’s not a rush. It’s not something that I’ve ever been able to work on. My direction to the plate, my extension, those things help with my carry, but you can only look at those numbers so much. I’m not super worried about those numbers. They’ve always been good.
JF: You use a heart monitor to measure your blood pressure before you throw every time?
Farquhar: It’s just to monitor it and make sure everything is good because that’s what ruptured my aneurysm is that my blood pressure went up and it ruptured. But they fixed the aneurysm that ruptured and I’ve got no new ones up there growing, so I’m cleared for that but it’s just something to keep an eye on it. I’ve got a paper with all my numbers on it and I turn it in every week and [Dr. Kathy Weber from RUSH Medical Center] is very content with all my numbers.
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JF: Given how hot it is in August in Southern California, is that something you have to be wary of?
Farquhar: One time it got up to 118 degrees out here, which is unheard of in Temecula. Right now it’s 84 degrees but it’s been a warm summer. Lot of days in the upper-90s, 100s, but I bring an extra shirt, I’m super hydrating. I grew up in south Florida where it’s semi-warm and humid and I went to college in Louisiana.
I’ve only seen snow seven times in my life and four of them were this year with the White Sox, so I’m kind of a warm-blooded creature.
JF: Is it a big positive that you’ve thrown in these hot temperatures and there haven’t been any issues?
Farquhar: Yeah! I haven’t thought about it that way but you can absolutely look at it that way. I haven’t felt dizzy, I haven’t had any of the symptoms the doctors tell me to look out for. Dizzy, lightheaded, headaches. I haven’t had any issues. That’s a plus on me and my trainer.
JF: Sticking in a major league bullpen is a challenge in any situation, but is coming back from this a challenge you’re anxious about? Or do the numbers make you think you could be better?
Farquhar: That’s a tough question because those are all things I can’t control. I wish I had some control and some say, but I decided to not focus all my energy on stuff that’s out of my power. I’m not super concerned about it. It will be what it will be, and whatever the White Sox decision is, it is what it is.
JF: Is there a rhyme or reason for why you’re throwing harder?
Farquhar: Oh yeah absolutely. I’m not pitching back-to-back days. I’m not getting on the mound back-to-back days. I’m fresh. Every time I’m throwing, I’m fresh. If I’m feeling not so good that day, I take a day off. I don’t have to be ready to pitch out of the bullpen. There’s absolutely a big bonus in this DL stint where I’m completely healthy.
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JF: Is it exciting to be the guy who has this unprecedented comeback or do you want to just come back and be one of the guys and not really dwell on this anymore when you return?
Farquhar: I have a feeling it’s going to be a big deal, but I’m going to try to look at it like it’s not a big deal, just like you said. I want to be just back normal, one of the guys, not a big deal. But just the fact that it’s never happened to a major league baseball player, somebody coming back from this injury … I know it happened to John Olerud when he was in college and then also Joe Niekro passed away from it when he was 61 years old. But I think besides that we’re the only three baseball players it’s happened to. I’m sure it will be a big deal but I’m going to make it not a big deal.
JF: You want to be known for being the guy with the tumbling changeup rather than for coming back?
Farquhar: Yeah! For sure! The best changeup ever, as opposed to the guy with the brain aneurysm.
(Top photo: Dylan Buell/Getty Images)