BASEBALL : Fisk, Walton Among 38 New Free Agents

Chicago White Sox catcher Carlton Fisk, Baltimore Oriole pitcher Bob Milacki and Chicago Cub outfielder Jerome Walton and 34 other players joined the largest free-agent class ever when teams failed to offer them contracts by Friday’s deadline.

By letting the players go, teams avoid having to go to salary arbitration with them. Some were not offered contracts to avoid the rule limiting pay cuts to 20%.

The White Sox hope to re-sign Fisk, while Oakland is thought to already have worked out a deal with pitcher Kirk Dressendorfer. Minnesota is believed to have agreed with first baseman Gene Larkin.

The White Sox called it “strictly a procedural matter” that allowed them to avoid the rule limiting pay cuts to 20% in their dealings with Fisk.

“We have every intention of eventually signing Pudge to a contract, but it just didn’t get done by today’s deadline,” General Manager Ron Schueler said.

Fisk needs to catch in 25 more games to surpass former Angel Bob Boone’s record of 2,225.

Among the group who filed for free agency in November, five more signed Friday, while Minnesota formally announced its $5.2-million, two-year deal with 41-year-old outfielder Dave Winfield.

“I’m at the point where it wasn’t just the dollars,” Winfield said. “I wanted to be happy. I’ve come from good places, I went to a better place last year and I think this may be the best.”

Outfielder Willie Wilson left Oakland and agreed to a $1.4-million, two-year contract with the Cubs, and infielder Rene Gonzales returned to the Angels.

Gonzales will be paid $600,000 next season and the Angels have a $900,000 option for 1994 with a $150,000 buyout. He played in 104 games last season and batted .277 with seven home runs and 38 runs batted in.

Outfielder Joe Orsulak and the New York Mets agreed to a $650,000 contract, and outfielder Harold Baines accepted the Oakland Athletics’ offer of salary arbitration.

Pitcher Larry Andersen and the Philadelphia Phillies signed a minor league contract. The Phillies guaranteed $350,000 of his salary.

Thirteen free agents who have been offered arbitration, meanwhile, approached Saturday’s 9 p.m. PST deadline to accept or reject the offers, a group that included Mark McGwire, Ruben Sierra and Robin Yount.

McGwire and Sierra have said they will reject the offers. Yount was attempting to finalize his tentative deal with the Brewers, said to be worth $3.5 million. Players who reject the offers may continue to negotiate with their former teams through Jan. 8.

Five players eligible for arbitration agreed to one-year contracts: Cub outfielder Dwight Smith ($630,000), Twin pitcher Gary Wayne ($325,000), A’s pitcher Shawn Hillegas ($210,000), Seattle Mariner pitcher Dennis Powell ($175,000) and Oriole catcher Mark Parent ($215,000 in the majors, $70,000 in the minors).

About 140 players are eligible to file for free agency in January.

The Florida Marlins lost one of their expansion draft choices Friday and left another up for grabs. Third baseman Chris Donnels, picked last month from the Mets, was claimed off waivers by the Houston Astros. And the Marlins said they didn’t offer pitcher Robert Person a major league contract.