Sabo Spurns Mets, Signs Deal With Orioles

Third baseman Chris Sabo, who became a free agent when the Cincinnati Reds made it clear they didn’t want him back, agreed Friday to a $2-million, one-year contract with the Baltimore Orioles.

Sabo, a three-time All-Star who made $3.1 million last season, also had been negotiating with the New York Mets, who, according to his agent, offered more money.

Sabo, who will turn 32 on Wednesday, had 21 home runs and 82 runs batted in last season.

Also signing Friday was pitcher Greg Hibbard, formerly of the Chicago Cubs. He agreed to a $6.75-million, three-year deal with the Seattle Mariners.

Hibbard, a 29-year-old left-hander, was 15-11 in 1993.

Tennis

Defending champion Pete Sampras reached the final of the New South Wales Open at Sydney, Australia, with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Petr Korda of the Czech Republic in one semifinal. Ivan Lendl defeated American Todd Martin in the other, 6-4, 6-2.

In women’s play, fifth-seeded Kimiko Date of Japan beat top-seeded Conchita Martinez of Spain, 6-3, 6-0, and will face American Patty Fendick in the semifinals. Fendick was a 6-3, 6-1 winner over Linda Ferrando of Italy.

Second-seeded Gabriela Sabatini of Argentina and third-seeded Mary Joe Fernandez will meet in the other women’s semifinal.

Fernandez defeated sixth-seeded Zina Garrison-Jackson, 7-5, 6-2, and Sabatini beat Barbara Rittner of Germany, 6-1, 6-3.

Patrick McEnroe advanced to the semifinals of the New Zealand Open with a victory over Marcos Ondruska at Auckland, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4. Top-seeded Magnus Gustafsson of Sweden also advanced with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Spain’s Tomas Carbonell.

Skiing

Katja Seizinger of Germany won a downhill World Cup event at Cortina D’Ampezzo, Italy, beating Austrian Veronika Stallmaier by 0.37 seconds.

The International Ski Federation ordered a rerun of last week’s women’s World Cup super-G at Altenmarkt, Austria, that was stopped because of bad conditions after 33 of 85 skiers had started.

Miscellany

Nigel Mansell, who won the Formula One championship in 1992 and followed it up last season by becoming the first rookie to win the Indy car PPG Cup title, became the first driver to lap the Phoenix International Raceway one-mile oval in under 20 seconds.

He drove a new Lola-Ford around the track in a computer-timed 19.96 seconds.

Dodger catcher Mike Piazza and UCLA volleyball and basketball player Natalie Williams have been selected as the Amateur Athletic Foundation’s Southern California male and female athletes of the year for 1993.

Names in the News

UCLA reserve quarterback Rob Walker underwent arthroscopic surgery at UCLA Medical Center for torn cartilage in his left knee. He is expected to be ready for spring drills. . . . Sophomore wide receiver Tamarick Vanover says he wants to return to Florida State for his junior season, but athletic department officials won’t clear him until questions about his financial assistance are resolved. . . . Lewis Sims, the North Carolina State basketball team’s second-leading scorer, was ruled academically ineligible for the rest of the season. . . . Rolando Blackman of the New York Knicks was suspended for a game without pay and fined $2,000 for throwing a punch at David Wood of the Detroit Pistons. . . . Alex Crozier, coach of the Cal Poly women’s soccer team, has been voted 1993 Division II coach of the year.