This day in sports: Angels’ Bo Belinsky pitches first major league no-hitter in L.A.
The first major league no-hitter in Los Angeles was pitched on this date in 1962 when the Angels’ Bo Belinsky blanked the Baltimore Orioles 2-0 at Dodger Stadium.
The 25-year-old rookie left-hander struck out nine, walked four and hit two batters, using an array of pitches that included a lively fastball and a deceptive screwball that helped improve his record to 4-0 in four starts.
To the Angels’ dismay, Belinsky was a pool-hustling, nightclub carouser who dated several Hollywood actresses including Mamie Van Doren. He was suspended in 1964 after he punched The Times’ Braven Dyer in a Washington hotel room and later traded to the Philadelphia Phillies for first baseman Costen Shockley and pitcher Rudy May.
The Angels played in Dodger Stadium from 1962 until 1965, when the team moved to Anaheim for the 1966 season.
A look at some of the biggest moments in sports history that occurred on April 12.
It it weren’t for the COVID-19 pandemic, the Dodgers were scheduled Tuesday to play the Chicago Cubs in the second of three games at Dodger Stadium. The Angels would have traveled to Boston for the start of a six-game trip, that included three games against the Red Sox.
Here is a look at memorable games and outstanding sports performances on this date:
1904 — Cy Young of the Boston Americans, now the Red Sox, pitches a perfect game against the Philadelphia Athletics at Huntington Grounds in Boston, beating Rube Waddell 3-0 before 10,267 fans.
1934 — Cavalcade, ridden by Mack Garner, wins the 60th Kentucky Derby by more than three lengths over Discovery in a time of 2:04. It’s Cavalcade’s third victory in a span of less than two weeks, and it is the fifth time in Derby history that a woman, Isabel Dodge Sloane, is the winning owner.
1969 — The Boston Celtics beat the Lakers 107-102 in Game 7 at the Forum to win the NBA championship for the 10th time in 11 years. Player-coach Bill Russell retires as a player after the Celtics come back from a 3-2 series deficit. John Havlicek scores 26 points and Sam Jones adds 24 for Boston. Jerry West leads the Lakers with 42.
1973 — Secretariat, ridden by Ron Turcotte, wins the Kentucky Derby in a record time of 1:59.2. The big chestnut colt breaks last in a 13-horse field but improves his position throughout the race to get the lead in the stretch and draw away from Sham by 2½ lengths. Secretariat goes on to win the Triple Crown.
1978 — Pete Rose of the Cincinnati Reds is the 14th player to reach the 3,000-hit mark when he lines a single to left field in the fifth inning against Montreal’s Steve Rogers at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati. Rose would play another eight seasons and retire as the all-time leader with 4,256 hits.
2001 — Monarchos, with Jorge Chavez in the saddle, wins the 127th Kentucky Derby by streaking across the finish line in 1:59 4-5, only two-fifths of a second off the track record set by Secretariat in 1973. Monarchos finishes the 1¼-mile race by four lengths over Invisible Ink.
2004 — Mike Piazza surpasses Carlton Fisk when he sets a major league record for home runs by a catcher with No. 352 in the New York Mets’ 8-2 win over the San Francisco Giants at Shea Stadium. Piazza launches a 3-1 pitch from Jerome Williams in the bottom of the first inning that bounces off the scoreboard behind the right-field wall.
2006 — The UCLA men’s volleyball team defeats Penn State 3-0 to win the NCAA championship at State College, Pa. It is the 19th and final title for coach Al Scates, tying him for the most NCAA championships in any sport. The Bruins are led by Steve Klosterman, the tournament’s most valuable player, along with Damien Scott, Dennis Gonzalez and Tony Kerr.
A look at what happened today in sport history.
2007 — Floyd Mayweather Jr. beats Oscar De La Hoya in one of the richest fights ever. Mayweather, using his superb defensive skills and superior speed, wins a 12-round split decision and the World Boxing Council’s 154-pound title in his first fight at that weight. A sellout crowd of 16,200 at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas sets a record gate of $19 million.
2013 — LeBron James is the overwhelming choice as the NBA’s most valuable player. The Miami Heat star gets 120 of 121 first-place votes, giving him the award for the fourth time. Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant finishes second and New York’s Carmelo Anthony, who receives the other first-place vote, is third.
SOURCES: The Times, Associated Press
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