A Fitting Award Is Presented

Richie Ashburn, two-time National League batting champion at Philadelphia, closed out his career with the 1962 New York Mets, the losingest team in history. He hit .306.

“They named me the team’s most valuable player,” recalled Ashburn, now a Philadelphia broadcaster and columnist. “After I got the award, I asked myself, ‘Most Valuable Player on the worst team ever? Just what do they mean by that?’

“By the way, the award was a boat. But I never got much use out of it back home. Where do you sail a boat in Nebraska? Finally, a guy wanted to buy it from me, so I sold it.

“His check bounced.”

Add Mets: When the club made Hobie Landrith, a catcher, its first selection in the expansion draft, Manager Casey Stengel explained: “You gotta start with a catcher or you’ll have all passed balls.”

Trivia Time: The New York Yankees have retired every number from No. 3 through No. 10, except No. 6. How many of the players can you name? (Answer below.)

K.C. Jones was an assistant coach with the Lakers when they set an NBA record with a 69-13 record in 1971-72. How would he compare them with the current Boston Celtics, who could tie the record?

“If we played a game, this team would come out on top,” Jones told Peter May of the Hartford Courant. “The big thing I see is height. Who is going to guard Kevin McHale? We had Jim McMillian and Happy Hairston, but neither of them can guard Kevin.”

“Up front, this team would have the edge, but in the backcourt, that team had the edge with Jerry West and Gail Goodrich. But I’d put Dennis Johnson on West and take my chances.”

For What It’s Worth: With Pedro Guerrero in the lineup last year, the Dodgers had a winning percentage of .580. In the 24 games he missed with injuries, they were .625.

Just Asking: Has anybody told Prime Ticket that Derek Smith no longer is playing for the Clippers? They’re still running that ticket promotion in which Smith says, “This season the Clippers will be soaring to new heights.”

Said Times staffer Dave Scheiderer, a diehard Cleveland fan, after Indians’ Manager Pat Corrales announced a rotation of Ken Schrom, Neal Heaton, Tom Candiotti and Phil Niekro: “It ain’t Feller, Wynn, Garcia and Lemon, is it?”

Trivia Answer: 3. Babe Ruth; 4. Lou Gehrig; 5. Joe DiMaggio; 7. Mickey Mantle; 8. Bill Dickey and Yogi Berra; 9. Roger Maris; 10. Phil Rizzuto.

Quotebook

Al McGuire, on Billy Packer: “Billy is very clever at his work. But the next bill he picks up will be his first. He is the proverbial tightwad. His children will be happy. He has saved every dime.”