BASEBALL DAILY REPORT : AROUND THE MAJOR LEAGUES : Kruk Gets a Hit, Promptly Retires

John Kruk retired from the Chicago White Sox on Sunday in the middle of a game against the Orioles in Baltimore.

Kruk, 34, singled in the first inning and was left on base. Frank Thomas pinch-hit for him in the third inning as Kruk was cleaning out his locker and leaving Camden Yards in the middle of the game.

“The desire to compete at this level is gone. When that happens, it’s time to go,” Kruk said in a statement that was released after the game.

“Yeah, he wanted to go out with a hit,” Chicago Manager Terry Bevington said. “If he wouldn’t have gotten a hit today, he would have waited until he got a hit.”

Kruk, who signed with the White Sox as a free agent May 12, batted .308 with two homers and 23 runs batted in in 49 games as first baseman-designated hitter. In his 10-year career with San Diego, Philadelphia and Chicago, he hit .300 with 100 homers and 592 RBIs.

He will long be remembered for futilely flailing at three pitches from Seattle’s Randy Johnson in the 1993 All-Star game in Baltimore. During the at-bat, he humorously acknowledged that he was overmatched by Johnson’s speed and control.

Kruk sat out the first six games of the 1994 season with Philadelphia after undergoing surgery for the removal of a cancerous testicle in March. Later that season, he was put on the disabled list after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right knee in May.

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Kansas City’s Bob Hamelin, the 1994 American League rookie of the year, was sent to the minors for the second time this year. Hamelin, who had 24 homers and 65 RBIs last year, was sent to triple-A Omaha. His spot on the roster was taken by pitcher Scott Anderson, a replacement player who won in his first start Sunday against Detroit. Meanwhile, pitcher Chris Haney, who has a herniated disk in his back, was moved from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list. . . . Steve Buechele, 33, was put on waivers and released by the Texas Rangers. He was hitless in his last 12 at bats. Luis Ortiz, 25, was recalled from triple-A Oklahoma City to fill Buechele’s place at third base. In another move, the Rangers acquired outfielder Lou Frazier from Montreal for a player to be determined.