Last Start May Finish Valenzuela : Baseball: He struggles to 6-5 win over Tacoma in final game for Edmonton.

TACOMA, Wash. â€”  Beyond a 10 a.m. tee time today and a trip to Los Angeles Wednesday to see his family, Fernando Valenzuela’s calendar is blank.

There are no starts for the Angels or their triple-A farm club, and there may not be any starts for anyone else, either.

Valenzuela’s minor league contract expired after his 6-5 victory for Edmonton over the Tacoma Tigers Monday night at Cheney Stadium, and he isn’t sure what his future holds. Although he pitched capably his first time through the lineup, he had spotty command and was hit progressively harder.

A run-scoring groundout in the seventh inning made him the winning pitcher, but that was after he gave up a game-tying, bases-loaded double to Nelson Simmons in the sixth inning.

“I will try to continue to stay in baseball as long as I can, because I love baseball,� said Valenzuela, who gave up five earned runs and six hits over six innings, raising his earned-run average to 6.59. He walked three and struck out three and gave up a long home run to Dann Howitt.

Valenzuela’s record was 2-3, both victories at the expense of the Tigers, Oakland’s top farm club. The Tigers are 23-33, fourth in the five-team Northern Division of the Pacific Coast League.

“I don’t think this will be my last game in baseball,� Valenzuela added. “This year, probably, but not for my career.�

Apparently he will decline the Angels’ offer to let him finish the season with Edmonton.

“We have an agreement and a contract to spend one month in the minor leagues and today is the deadline,� he said.

Angel Senior Vice President Dan O’Brien said he hopes Valenzuela will reconsider. “I think and have been told by my people he does take a step forward each time,� O’Brien said.

Given the Angels’ failure to permanently fill the fifth spot in their pitching rotation, their decision not to promote Valenzuela speaks volumes.

“If his numbers to this point had warranted a recall, we would have done it,� O’Brien said.

The judgment of Trapper Manager Max Oliveras, who said last Saturday that Valenzuela “would have some problems getting big league hitters out,� carried considerable weight. “He’s seen Fernando a hell of a lot more than I have,� O’Brien said. “You’ve got to rely on your people.�