Richie Ashburn

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Lore & Background

Ashburn was a two-time National League batting champion, and finished with a .308 career batting average. He also excelled as a defensive player, routinely leading the league in putouts. His 5,803 career putouts ranks third among center fielders in Major League Baseball history behind only Willie Mays and Tris Speaker. He ended his playing career with the Chicago Cubs and the New York Mets. Following his playing career, from 1963 until his death in 1997, Ashburn was a color commentator for television broadcasts of Philadelphia Phillies games. In 1995, he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. In 1997, he was inducted into The Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia Hall of Fame. He was posthumously inducted into the inaugural class of the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame in 2004.

In Their Own Story

Ashburn's path to the majors was fraught with legal hurdles before he finally signed with the Philadelphia Phillies. Initially, his 1943 contract with the Cleveland Indians and a 1944 deal with the Chicago Cubs were voided by Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis due to high school attendance rules and illegal clauses. After a brief college stint, he joined the Utica Blue Sox in 1945, where manager Eddie Sawyer converted him from catcher to center fielder. It was there teammates first called him "Whitey." His major league debut came on Opening Day 1948 as a 21-year-old rookie who started at left field before moving to center. By June, he held a .380 average with a 23-game hitting streak, becoming only the third rookie ever to start an All-Star Game. In his final season with the Mets in 1962, playing for a team that lost 120 games, Ashburn faced his former teammates in a triple play during his last game before deciding to retire rather than sit on the bench.

Reader's Guide

Ashburn was born in Tilden, Nebraska. His mother gave birth twice, each time to twins; Richie and sister Donna were the younger pair. He began playing baseball in 1935 in the Tilden Midget Baseball League when he was eight years old. He played as a catcher. He played baseball and basketball for Tilden High School then graduated to American Legion Baseball with the Neligh Junior Legion team. At the 1944 American Legion Junior Baseball East/West All-Star game, Philadelphia Athletics manager Connie Mack advised him to play another position due to his remarkable running speed. Ashburn signed a contract with the Cleveland Indians in 1943 at age 16, but Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis voided it because rules then prohibited signing players still attending high school. He then signed with the Chicago Cubs for their Nashville farm team in 1944, but Landis nullified that contract because of an illegal clause. After those two nullifications, Ashburn enrolled at Norfolk Junior College. After one semester, he signed with the Philadelphia Phillies. In 1945, at age 18, he made his professional debut with the Utica Blue Sox of the Eastern League. His manager, Eddie Sawyer, converted him into a center fielder. During his time with Utica, teammates began calling him "Whitey" because of his light blond hair. Ashburn was drafted by the United States Army early in the 1945 season but was allowed to finish the season, in which the Blue Sox won the Eastern League pennant. Ashburn led the team with a .312 batting average. He served with the Army in Alaska in 1946, then returned to the Blue Sox in 1947, where his team again won the Eastern League championship. Ashburn finished with the second best batting average in the Eastern League at .362. His 191 hits (in 137 games) set a league record for the most hits in a season. After the 1947 season, he returned to Norfolk Junior College for a second semester, where he met his future wife, Herberta Cox. The Phillies purchased his contract from their Toronto minor league affiliate on April 8, 1948. Ashburn made his major league debut on Opening Day 1948 as a 21-year-old rookie, starting as left fielder and leadoff hitter. He played left field for the first 12 games before replacing Harry Walker as the regular center fielder. By June 5, Ashburn had a .380 batting average and a 23-game hitting streak. He was named the starting center fi

Did You Know?

• Ashburn was a four-time All-Star, not five.
• His 5,803 career putouts rank third among center fielders, behind only Willie Mays and Tris Speaker.
• Ashburn and his sister Donna were twins, the younger pair of twins born to his mother.
• His 191 hits in 1947 with the Utica Blue Sox set a league record for the most hits in a season in the Eastern League.