NAMES AND NUMBERS

* ARIZONA STATE FANS: The Dodgers took special interest in Wichita State relief pitcher/designated hitter Darren Dreifort, their No. 1 draft pick, but their favorite team during the College World Series was Arizona State. They drafted three Sun Devils: pitcher Dax Winslett (third round), first baseman Doug Newstrom (seventh) and catcher Paul Loduca (mid-20s). Loduca led Division I players in hits and batted .446.

* WHAT NEXT? A finger blister contributed to the 10-3 pounding that Jim Abbott and the New York Yankees absorbed in Kansas City on Wednesday night. Abbott is 4-7 with a 4.66 earned-run average this year, and 11-22 over the last two years. He has been a victim of poor support, but it is felt by many that at some point he has to reverse the trend on his own. “I’m disappointed and awfully frustrated,” he said in Kansas City.

* FORD IN HIS FUTURE? Bob Wickman, acquired by the Yankees in the deal that sent Steve Sax to the Chicago White Sox, continues to close in on Whitey Ford’s record for the best start in club history. Ford was 16-1 during the 1950 and ’53 seasons. Wickman is 13-1, including 7-0 this year. He has won 10 consecutive decisions, the longest New York streak since Ron Guidry won 12 in a row in 1985. Wickman continues to win, despite a 3.76 earned-run average this year and no complete games in 19 starts as a Yankee. “He struggles but gets it done,” Manager Buck Showalter said.

* ROAD BLUES? The Boston Red Sox have negated their strong start by going 12-19 on the road, batting .248 compared to .281 at Fenway Park as of the start of a four-game series with the Baltimore Orioles Thursday night in Boston. With the season record slipping under .500 for the first time, Mike Greenwell said: “You can feel the tension start to build.”

* YARDSTICK: You can measure the impact of Mark McGwire’s loss on the struggling Oakland Athletics by the following: Despite sitting out 31 games with a heel injury, McGwire was still tied for the club lead in home runs with nine and was tied for second in runs batted in with 24. The A’s are last in the American League in team batting, and McGwire probably will sit out two to three more weeks.

* WHAT A GUY: The A’s offensive woes have prompted Tony La Russa to move Rickey Henderson to third in the batting order. His initial appearance in that spot last Sunday was his first out of the leadoff position since Sept. 14, 1987, when he batted cleanup for the Yankees. “I don’t know how permanent it is,” La Russa said. “We’ve got the greatest leadoff hitter in baseball, but we’re struggling to score runs. If Rickey was selfish, he could have said, ‘Do something else and leave me alone.’ ”

* PRESCRIPTION: Dave Stewart is rejecting the advice of the Toronto Blue Jay doctors that he give up his valuable forkball because of the stress it puts on the recently repaired flexor muscle that sidelined him for the first six weeks of the season. Stewart (2-2, 6.12 ERA) threw about 25 forkballs during Wednesday’s 6-4 loss to the Angels and said: “I’ve put my health on the line for years in an attempt to win games, and I’m not going to change now.”

* NO JUSTICE: The Atlanta Braves have spent about $75 million in recent months to sign Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, John Smoltz and Deion Sanders to long-term contracts, but David Justice reportedly sneered at a three-year, $10-million offer made last week. “I’ll be glad to lock myself up if they want to put something on the shelf that’s serious, but they haven’t been serious yet,” said the right fielder, who is batting .224.