CHICAGO _ Danny Farquhar is healthy.
And come Wednesday, he'll be in Birmingham, Ala., beginning the next phase in his baseball journey.
Farquhar, who nearly died after suffering an aneurysm last season, is back in the White Sox organization as a minor-league pitching instructor.
"It's a very special opportunity," Farquhar said Thursday during a conference call. "I'm really excited for it. It's one of those things where they are letting me dip my foot in the water in 2019. They are going to send me to (Double-A affiliate) Birmingham to learn from (manager) Omar (Vizquel) and (pitching coach Richard) Dotson and all the other coaches out there. Just to see what the other side is about.
"As far as the vision, I honestly don't know. I want to get my foot in the door and see what I like to do and it almost seems like they are very open to my feelings on the coaching side and so it's a great working relationship we have."
On April 20, 2018, Farquhar collapsed in the Sox dugout shortly after pitching in game against the Astros at Guaranteed Rate Field. The reliever had suffered a ruptured aneurysm that caused a brain hemorrhage.
Farquhar underwent emergency surgery at Rush University Medical Center and was hospitalized until May 7.
"Obviously, everyone knows the backstory on Danny," Sox general manager Rick Hahn said Wednesday. "The aneurysm likely cut short his playing career, but he's eager to continue on as a coach, and it's something we have discussed with Danny going back well prior to the aneurysm.
"We think he has a great deal of upside and a great future in coaching and player development. We're excited he decided to join us in the coming weeks."
Farquhar went 3-1 with a 4.84 ERA with the Sox in 2017-18. In January, he signed a minor-league contract with the Yankees, who released him June 19.
He's at peace with how the comeback attempt played out.
"The injury affected me more than I was willing to accept," Farquhar said. "It's one of those where I never want to be like, 'Oh, you can't do this.' I want to push through. Honestly, it all came to me when I got to Triple-A and I was watching the guys throw, and they were really really good, throwing really really hard. That's when I realized how far behind I was.
"I put a year-plus into work, busted my butt hard to try to get to that point, and I was really far behind. And when the Yankees released me, we drove across the country from Scranton to California, you have a lot of time to reflect and you realize it's time to move on and move on to the next stage in my career, which I've been talking about it's something I've wanted to do for some time now. It wasn't an overnight decision."
Farquhar reached out to Hahn to discuss the coaching possibility. He also talked to assistant general manager Jeremy Haber, director of player development Chris Getz and assistant pitching coordinator Everett Teaford about an opportunity.
"I have nothing but good things to say about (the White Sox)," Farquhar said. "I loved my time there. I loved how they treated me through my injury. I loved even in the offseason when they chose not to renew my contract. It's a business, I completely understand it. And I love them for it and I'm happy to be back."
And the Sox are thrilled with Farquhar's return.
"It's pretty awesome," Sox manager Rick Renteria said. "It's actually a great story. He has been through a lot. While he was here, everyone had a good feeling about him, great guy, everybody loved him.
"That he can come back as an instructor in the organization is fantastic. He's a pretty bright young man, and to take some of the insight he's learned from here and in his career, hopefully it will transition into something positive."
