Before diving into the details of this seemingly impossible feat, why was Ellis on LSD during his start in the first place? Well, the Pirates had an off-day Thursday before a Friday doubleheader with Ellis slated to pitch the first game at 6:00. Ellis chose to spend the day off by heading up to his friend’s girlfriend’s house in Los Angeles.
Before leaving the airport, Ellis took a hit of acid. After arriving in Tinseltown, Ellis continued taking hits of LSD. Waking up on Friday still thinking it was Thursday, Ellis took another hit of acid. It was not until his friend’s girlfriend showed him the newspaper that Ellis realized he better get back to San Diego.
High as a kite, Ellis made it to the stadium 90 minutes before first pitch. As for the game itself, Ellis was understandably erratic, walking eight batters while hitting another. Ellis recalled jumping out of the way of an apparent line drive. It turns out the ball was not hit hard and or even near him. Ellis also remembered the ball seeming small at some points, and large at others.
But wait, there’s more.
“I started having a crazy idea in the fourth inning that Richard Nixon was the home plate umpire, and once I thought I was pitching a baseball to Jimi Hendrix, who to me was holding a guitar and swinging it over the plate,” Ellis recalled.
The guy is pitching a no-hitter, he definitely has butterflies in his belly, right? Wrong. The LSD gave Ellis a feeling of euphoria throughout his dominant day on the mound.
Perhaps what is most astonishing is that Ellis said he could not feel the ball. So much for your pitching coach telling you to focus on your grips.
There have been 303 no-hitters in MLB history, and the fact that Dock Ellis threw one of them while high as a Georgia pine is nothing short of remarkable.
George Whitbread may have Cerebral Palsy, but he does not let it slow him down in achieving his goals. George is a St. John’s University student studying journalism as an aspiring sports broadcaster. The Oceanside New York native began chasing his broadcasting dream back in high school when he did play-by-play and public address announcing for his school’s football and boy’s and girl’s lacrosse teams. At St. John’s, George is an active member in the school’s radio station, WSJU. With WSJU, George has two sports radio shows and frequently does play-by-play or color commentary for St. John’s men’s and women’s basketball and baseball.
George has been working for the New York Mets since 2016 as a member of the promotions staff. Last summer, George increased his role in the Mets organization when he took on a second job as a tour guide. It is George’s true love for the Mets and baseball that makes him love what he does. It is George’s dream to one day end up in a broadcast booth, but the Mets booth would be an extra special place to call home.
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