This video features an interview by legendary sportscaster Keith Jackson’s interview with MLB Hall of Fame member Pillies OF Richie Ashburn…..as they reminisce about the 1962 New York Mets.team that lost a total of 120 games in the teams 1st year in the Major Leagues.
Donald Richard Ashburn (March 19, 1927 – September 9, 1997), also known by the nicknames, “Putt-Putt“, “The Tilden Flash“ and “Whitey“ (due to his light-blond hair)….was an American center fielder in Major League Baseball….who from his youth on a Nebraska farm….he grew up to become a professional outfielder and veteran broadcaster for the Philadelphia Phillies….and one of the most beloved sports figures in Philadelphia history. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1995.
One of the famous “Whiz Kids” of the National League champion 1950 Philadelphia Phillies….a team with whom he played for 12 of his 15 major-league seasons from 1948 through 1959…..who sported a .308 lifetime batting average….while leading the National League twice in batting average….and routinely leading the league in fielding percentage. In 1950, in the last game of the regular season, he threw Dodgers’ runner Cal Abrams out at home plate to preserve a 1–1 tie….which set the stage for Dick Sisler’s pennant-clinching home run.
