How Dock Ellis dropped acid and threw a no-hitter

[Spike]

“No No: A Dockumentary,” a new film about Ellis, who gained notoriety for pitching a 1970 no-hitter under the influence of LSD.

“I pitched every game in the major leagues under the influence of drugs,” he once said of his 12-year baseball career.

According to him, speed pills were consumed by around 90 percent of major-league players at the time.

“We did everything, tried everything and partied all the time. We would try to see who could out-amphetamine one another,” says Spinks, noting that the normal dose was 5 milligrams. “If he took 10 milligrams, I would take 20. If I took 20, he would take 25. Dock was a little bit more intense than I was. He did things higher and harder than anyone else.”

“By 1970, he had clearly experimented with LSD,” says Radice. “He had this room . . . that he called the Dungeon. He had a black light, and he would [take LSD], and he would listen to Jimi Hendrix. That was one of his little rituals.”

But as wild as Ellis was, few could have predicted what he’d pull off on June 12, 1970, in a game against the San Diego Padres.

According to Ellis, he flew into San Diego on June 11, one day before his next pitching assignment. He took LSD, then went to a friend’s house in LA. He partied, fell asleep and took more LSD when he woke up.

“He was on such a bender that he lost track of time — he was partying for 24, 36 hours straight,” says Radice. “When he woke, he thought it was a day off, but he had already gone through 24 hours.”

Ellis rushed to San Diego for the game. He pitched wildly through all nine innings, walking eight and hitting a batter, but managed to pitch a no-hitter in a 2-0 victory. After the game, says Spinks, someone asked Ellis if he saw the game’s final play.

He responded, “Did I see it? You should have seen it the way I saw it.”

Of course, Ellis didn’t go public about what condition he was in at the time, so no one who saw the game knew what they had just witnessed.

“He said that [his teammates] knew he was high, but not what he was high on,” says Radice. “None of his teammates really knew what acid was. They just thought it was Dock being ‘Crazy Dock.’ ”

Spinks says that two weeks later, Ellis told him about the LSD, and that he had been unable to see which players he was facing, making out only whether they had been left- or right-handed.

“I didn’t know if I was facing Hank Aaron, Willie Mays or Mickey Mantle,” said Ellis. “I was just out there throwing a baseball and having a great time.”

http://nypost.com/2014/08/31/pitcher-dock-ellis-dropped-acid-then-threw-a-no-hitter/

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now that's baseball

 

[Super Dave]

Dock Ellis vs.The Cincinnati Reds

On May 5, 1972, Ellis, Willie Stargell, and Rennie Stennett missed the team bus to Riverfront Stadium. A security guard asked the three for identification; Stargell and Stennett complied and were allowed in, but Ellis did not have identification with him. The guard said that Ellis did not identify himself, appeared drunk, and "made threatening gestures with a closed fist." Ellis countered that he was showing his World Series ring as evidence of his affiliation with the Pirates. In response, the guard maced Ellis. Ellis was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.[52]

The Reds sued Ellis for assault and Ellis countersued. Before going to trial, the Reds dropped the suit and wrote Ellis a letter of apology. The municipal court dropped the charges against Ellis, though Ellis stated that this incident made him "hate better"

Ellis attempted to hit every batter in the Cincinnati Reds lineup on May 1, 1974, as he was angry that the Pirates were intimidated by the Big Red Machine. Ellis admired Pete Rose and was concerned about how he would respond, but Ellis decided to do it regardless. Ellis hit Rose, Joe Morgan, and Dan Driessen in the top of the first inning.

Cleanup batter Tony Pérez avoided Ellis's attempts and drew a walk; the first pitch to Perez was thrown behind him and over his head. Ellis threw two pitches that he aimed at the head of Johnny Bench, at which point Ellis was removed from the game by manager Danny Murtaugh. Ellis's box score for the game reads as follows: 0 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K.[51] Ellis tied eight other players for the MLB record with the three hit batsmen in the inning.

Dock Ellis is clearly not getting enough love from the Pittsburgh faithful.........Imagine some steeler doing that against the Patriots........

 

[Super Dave]

Dock Ellis vs.The Cincinnati Reds

On May 5, 1972, Ellis, Willie Stargell, and Rennie Stennett missed the team bus to Riverfront Stadium. A security guard asked the three for identification; Stargell and Stennett complied and were allowed in, but Ellis did not have identification with him. The guard said that Ellis did not identify himself, appeared drunk, and "made threatening gestures with a closed fist." Ellis countered that he was showing his World Series ring as evidence of his affiliation with the Pirates. In response, the guard maced Ellis. Ellis was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.[52]

The Reds sued Ellis for assault and Ellis countersued. Before going to trial, the Reds dropped the suit and wrote Ellis a letter of apology. The municipal court dropped the charges against Ellis, though Ellis stated that this incident made him "hate better"

Ellis attempted to hit every batter in the Cincinnati Reds lineup on May 1, 1974, as he was angry that the Pirates were intimidated by the Big Red Machine. Ellis admired Pete Rose and was concerned about how he would respond, but Ellis decided to do it regardless. Ellis hit Rose, Joe Morgan, and Dan Driessen in the top of the first inning.

Cleanup batter Tony Pérez avoided Ellis's attempts and drew a walk; the first pitch to Perez was thrown behind him and over his head. Ellis threw two pitches that he aimed at the head of Johnny Bench, at which point Ellis was removed from the game by manager Danny Murtaugh. Ellis's box score for the game reads as follows: 0 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K.[51] Ellis tied eight other players for the MLB record with the three hit batsmen in the inning.

Dock Ellis is clearly not getting enough love from the Pittsburgh faithful.........Imagine some Steeler doing something similar to that against the Patriots........

 

[Hineswardkickedurpanzyass]

Classic, never heard this story. I vote we retire his number....i hate the reds that much

 

[USDA#1]

it's even more impressive if you've ever actually taken LSD.

 

[Steeltime]

Ellis was one in a million. His going after the Reds in 1974 is something I heard about a long time back.

And when Ellis went after a batter, he meant business - head-high. If Ellis were on the Pirates today, I can guarantee you that several Diamondbacks and Brewers would have needed a motorcycle helmet to protect them.