Man of Steal Has Worn Out His Welcome

Mike Lupica of the New York Daily News writes that Rickey Henderson of the Mets is now a bigger nuisance than he is an asset:

“He goes because it is clear that he is a danger to the Mets’ season. He is old and his act is even older than I thought it was at the start of spring training. I thought the Mets could live with him. They can’t.

“Rickey Henderson goes because he dogged it on a force play at second the other night the way he has dogged it with other teams when he lost interest.”

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Trivia time: When was the last time four holes in one were recorded on the same day and on the same hole on the PGA Tour?

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The lefty movement: Blackie Sherrod in the Dallas Morning News: “More and more left-handers coming out of the closets. More left-handed presidents, senators, gittar strummers, passers, hitters, dribblers, et al.

“Not long ago, tennis, first base and pitcher’s mound were the only sports stations prejudiced toward southpaws. Golf? Forget it. Bob Charles was a freak. He’s lucky the PGA didn’t make him change shoes in his car.”

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Jockey crisis: Jeff Gordon in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: “The British horse racing industry has embarked on a nationwide search for kids light enough to become prospective jockeys. It seems the young Brits, as a whole, are getting heavier.

“The campaign is searching for 16-year-olds who stand no taller than 5 feet 5 and weigh no more than 140 pounds.”

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Sir Slob: Jayson Williams of the New Jersey Nets in his book “Loose Balls”: “The sharpest dresser and the worst dresser is the same person--Charles Barkley. He’s got such nice suits but they’re always purple and yellow and stuff.

“He’s got the best suits and the worst colors. But he’s 6-10 [closer to 6-6], 265, so nobody tells him about it.”

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Come again? A headline in the Austin American of March 28, 1925, accompanying coverage of the inaugural Texas Relays: “OSBORNE LOWERS WORLD HIGH JUMP RECORD HERE.”

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FYI: Sebastian Coe can add another title to his two Olympic gold medals in the 1,500-meter run--Lord Coe. He was among 33 new peers appointed recently by British Prime Minister Tony Blair to the reconstructed House of Lords.

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Looking back: On this day in 1995, Dallas and Houston set an NBA record for most points in an overtime period (first) with 46--23 each.

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Trivia answer: The 1989 U.S. Open at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, N.Y., by Doug Weaver, Mark Wiebe, Jerry Pate and Nick Price on the 160-yard sixth hole, all with a seven-iron.

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And finally: Shaun Powell in Newsday: ‘The Masters takes great pride in being exclusive, which means chances are you will never attend the tourney.

“If they held the Super Bowl in a 5,000-seat high school stadium, four seats on the 50-yard line would be easier to get than a Masters badge.

”. . . You could beg an Augusta National Club member for a badge, except the club won’t reveal their names, not even their handicaps. Even the exact number of members is guarded with Secret Service-like intensity.”