The White Sox`s biggest victory Thursday came on an operating table.
Star right-fielder Harold Baines underwent successful arthroscopic surgery on his right knee. His teammates then celebrated with an 8-4 victory over Minnesota in 10 innings.
In the 10th, ex-Cub George Frazier showed he`s still in the giving mood. He issued a bases-loaded walk to John Cangelosi, forcing in Kenny Williams with the winning run. Tim Hulett then cleared the bases with a double.
The victory, though, was secondary to Baines` condition. ”Harold`s fine,” said Sox manager Jim Fregosi. ”They didn`t have to open him up. The doctors were pleased with how everything went.”
The surgery ended a disappointing season for Baines. He posted respectable numbers, leading the Sox in virtually every hitting category. He hit .296 with 21 homers and 88 runs batted in.
”I had an up and down year,” he said before the surgery. ”I wasn`t as consistent as I would have liked. I fell in a rut a few weeks before the (All- Star) break, and then right after the break. That`s when I usually take off. I don`t have a reason for it.”
Baines refused to use Greg Walker`s injuries as an excuse. Without Walker hitting behind him, pitchers had the luxury of pitching around Baines. He didn`t get much to hit.
”They were making me hit a lot of bad balls,” Baines said. ”If you want to call that pitching around me, fine. I call it not smart enough to lay off those pitches.”
Baines also was upset with the team`s performance. After the excitement of winning the AL West in 1983, he never expected to suffer through three subpar years.
”I would have said you`re crazy,” Baines said. ”Almost everyone thought we would dominate after `83. You always remember a winner, you never remember a loser. Once you win, it makes you even hungrier to get back there. Nobody enjoys losing.
”I don`t like hearing, `Wait till next year.` That`s a copout. That`s the easiest thing you can say. I had a taste of winning once. I hope it`s not the last.”
Jose DeLeon gave the Sox another good outing Thursday, allowing four hits in seven innings and leaving with a 4-2 lead.
DeLeon, though, didn`t get the victory because the Sox bullpen folded. The Twins cut the lead to 4-3 with a run in the eighth off Dave Schmidt. In the ninth, eventual winner Bobby Thigpen (2-0) allowed an RBI single to Tom Brunansky.
DeLeon ended the season with a 4-5 mark in 13 starts after coming from Pittsburgh in a trade. His most impressive statistic was 49 hits allowed in 79 innings.
”He`s a pretty good pitcher,” Fregosi said. ”He pitched well, and he deserved to win. He`s learning more about himself all the time. I couldn`t be happier with the job he`s done.”
