Orioles Cut Losses, Drop Fernandez

American League

The Baltimore Orioles Sunday finally stopped waiting for a discouraging situation to get better. Twenty months and six victories after they signed him to a three-year, $9 million contract, the Orioles waived pitcher Sid Fernandez.

The veteran left-hander, who had lost his spot in the team’s starting rotation and recently had contemplated retirement, was placed on waivers. If he’s not claimed by another major league club - and he almost certainly won’t be - he officially will be released on Thursday and will become a free agent able to sign with any team. The Orioles will have to pay the remaining portion of Fernandez’s contract, approximately $4.5 million.

The Orioles ended up paying Fernandez $1.5 million per victory. He had a 6-10 record and a 5.59 earned run average in his 27 appearances as an Oriole, 26 of them starts.

He’s winless since last July 15, and is 0-4 with a 7.39 ERA this season.

Brewers 9, Angels 7

Anaheim, Calif.

After being shut out by Mark Langston the previous night, Milwaukee wasted no time jumping on All-Star Chuck Finley.

Matt Mieske’s first career grand slam capped a six-run first inning as the Brewers held on to beat California.

Rangers 5, Yanks 4 (12)

Arlington, Texas

Playing in 102-degree heat, New York failed to take advantage of six errors by Texas, left 15 men on base and dropped eight games behind Boston in the A.L. East.

Mickey Tettleton tied the game in the eighth with his 200th career home run, then won it with an RBI single in the 12th.

Blue Jays 7, Athletics 3

Oakland, Calif.

Devon White homered and scored three runs, and Pat Hentgen pitched 7 strong innings as Toronto beat Oakland.

White went 3 for 5 and hit his eighth home run, and Roberto Alomar and Ed Sprague also homered for the Blue Jays.

Red Sox 7, Twins 0

Minneapolis

Knuckleballer Tim Wakefield took a no-hitter into the eighth inning for the second time this season, losing it on a leadoff single by Jeff Reboulet, as Boston beat Minnesota.

Wakefield (7-1), who lost 15 games in the minor leagues last year, finished with a four-hitter for his first American League shutout. In lowering his league-best ERA to 1.61, he walked four and struck out three.

Tigers 4, Royals 2

Detroit

Rookie Felipe Lira earned his fifth victory in seven starts as Detroit took advantage of Tom Gordon’s wildness.

Detroit, which has won nine of its last 12 games, had only six hits but scored two runs on a bases-loaded walk and a wild pitch.

Orioles 11, White Sox 2

Chicago

Scott Erickson made a successful Baltimore debut, and Harold Baines and Chris Hoiles homered as the Orioles completed a fourgame sweep of Chicago.

Erickson (5-6), making his debut with the Orioles after being acquired Friday from Minnesota, allowed two runs in six innings as Baltimore earned its first four-game sweep in Chicago since June 1969.

Clearing the bases

A worker installing lights at the SkyDome for a computer trade show died after falling 25 feet from a scaffold and landing head first on a concrete floor. He is the fourth worker to die in accidents at Toronto’s ballpark… . Minnesota is now 0-10 in Sunday games and 3-16 in day games. In splitting the four-game series, Minnesota failed again to win its first home series of the season.