Name’s the Same, but the Ballgame Isn’t Teddy’s

Dan Shaughnessy in the Boston Globe: “Ted Williams visited the Red Sox training site [recently]. The other Ted Williams.

“A resident of Springville, N.Y., Williams was just another fan--one with a famous name--at the Sox compound. He stood with other fans outside the yellow ropes and begged for autographs.

“He’s 53 years old and took a lot of heat growing up in New York with a name like Ted Williams.

“ ‘I got teased about it all the time,’ said Williams, who was a right-handed hitter in high school. ‘They yelled a lot of nasty things at me when I played baseball.’ ”

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Trivia time: What is the men’s NCAA Division I basketball record for the largest lead before an opponent scored at the start of a game?

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Winning “act”: Claire Smith of the Philadelphia Inquirer is not amused by Dennis Rodman’s outrageous antics on the court:

“Circuses shouldn’t draw more attention than legitimate games, but sadly they sometimes do. When Rodman does, Rodman wins, laughing all the way to the bank.

“No one knows better than he that no matter how outrageous the rings in his nose are, the biggest remain implanted in the sniffers of those he has snookered for years.”

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Selig’s law: Bernie Lincicome in the Chicago Tribune: “In keeping with his new Czar-like powers as baseball commissioner, Bud Selig has ordered the list of penalties for bad behavior laminated on wallet-sized cards for all players to have handy whenever stupidity threatens to seize them.

“Some examples: Gambling--Lifetime ban, Pete Rose. Drugs--Season, Darryl Strawberry. Bigotry--73 days, John Rocker. Andro-cardiovascular disease, liver dysfunction, high cholesterol, optional.

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What day, then? Steffi Graf says she does not plan to marry Andre Agassi on June 14, her birthday.

“Please be nice and stop bombarding us with mails and faxes,” a message on Graf’s Web site said. “It’s an invention of the press to increase their circulation.”

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Also, depressing: Matthew Engel, editor of the respected Cricket Almanac Wisden, is quitting because the English teams are lousy.

“When you are continually writing downbeat articles, it can become very tiresome, very difficult,” he said.

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Looking back: On this day in 1920, the Montreal Canadiens set an NHL record for goals in a game with a 16-3 rout of the Quebec Bulldogs.

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Looking back again: On this day in 1984, Peter Ueberroth, president of the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee, was elected commissioner of baseball by the major league team owners.

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Trivia answer: Seton Hall led Kean University of Union, N.J., 34-0, on Nov. 29, 1998.

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And finally: Steve Rosenbloom in the Chicago Tribune: “Former Cub Mike Morgan, now with the Diamondbacks, not only can laugh about pitching for his 12th team, he’ll get some extra cash to let Pacific Bell laugh too.

“Seems the back of the Giants’ media guide features an ad for Internet-ready cell phones with copy that reads: ‘Get up-to-the-minute sports stats. Like which team Mike Morgan is on today.’ ”