It was a warm holiday afternoon nearly 25 years ago, a perfect day for July 4th baseball. For the Yankees\u2019 Dave Righetti, it was also a perfect day to pitch a no-hitter against the Boston Red Sox. On that afternoon, Righetti whiffed Wade Boggs, flung his arms in the air and celebrated his doodle of a day at Yankee Stadium.<\/p>\n
Righetti did a conference call on Thursday and offered some insights and anecdotes about the day in 1983 that he will never forget. It would be hard for Righetti to forget it since he said someone usually asks him about it every day.<\/p>\n
During the call, Righetti explained how he never regretted being switched from a starter to a closer one year later, how he and teammate Graig Nettles drove to Atlantic City after the game, how he was worried about Boggs smacking an infield hit to ruin his special day and how the best mementos from the game came from fans.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think about it a lot because I\u2019m still in the game,\u201d said Righetti, who is the pitching coach for the San Francisco Giants. \u201cI think, when you\u2019re out of the game, you don\u2019t think about it as much. But, when the game is in front of you all the time and you\u2019re still involved with pitching, you constantly think about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
As years have passed, Righetti has grown prouder of his performance.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, I covet it even more now,\u201d Righetti said. \u201cI always thought I was going to go back and start. I kind of had the feeling like, You\u2019re just going to go into the bullpen until we find somebody to do the closer\u2019s job and you\u2019ll go back. I thought maybe I\u2019d have another shot at it.\u201d<\/p>\n
But that did not happen. Still, Righetti said legions of fans remind him of the game over and over.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it helped with the YES Network and the Yankees coming back to prominence in the last 10 years,\u201d Righetti said. \u201cThere\u2019s a whole new generation of fans that are growing up and watching these things over and over on these channels, probably replays everywhere. I think it\u2019s like a subliminal thing. They actually feel like they were there and that it was happening recently.\u201d<\/p>\n
When Righetti returned to the dugout between innings, he heard Fran Healy, the television sportscaster, mention that Righetti had a no-hitter and said, \u201cOh, geez, he didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
With two outs in the ninth, Righetti said he was not trying to strike out Boggs. He was worried about throwing an outside slider that Boggs might hit between the mound and first baseman Don Mattingly. Righetti told himself there was \u201cno way\u201d he was going to lose the no-no on a tapper.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy biggest worry, because I had a tendency to fall toward third base, was him tapping a ball between me and Mattingly and me trying to get to first base,\u201d Righetti said. \u201cI threw a lot of fastballs during the at bat, but the last slider I ended up throwing, he happened to miss it. Thank goodness.\u201d<\/p>\n
After Righetti celebrated with his teammates, he said he never made it to the clubhouse with them. He did a radio interview and then a T.V. interview on the field.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy next start, I believe my cleats were gone,\u201d Righetti said. \u201cMy hat was gone for sure. I know the ball was gone. I ended up getting a ball from the game, but I think that ball is in the Hall of Fame or somewhere else. I know my shoes are, I think, and my hat. I had my glove, but my locker seemed a little thin by the time I got back.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Brad Horn of the Hall of Fame, Righetti\u2019s cap and the ball from his final pitch are the only items from the no-hitter in the museum. Interestingly, Righetti said the best mementos actually came from others.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom that game, the neatest stuff came from the fans,\u201d Righetti said. \u201cRichard Nixon sent me a nice letter. He was at the ballgame. I got things from all over the world. From servicemen to people that were on vacation, where they were on July 4, Yankee fans. I just picked the right day. The Red Sox, Yankee Stadium, Lou Gehrig\u2019s anniversary of his farewell speech. It was a lucky day. It hadn\u2019t been done in many years since Don Larsen had done it. I think that\u2019s why it still endures, too.\u201d<\/p>\n
Righetti said Nettles was the only teammate who spoke to him late in the game because they had postgame plans. The All-Star break started after the game so the two Californians planned to drive to Atlantic City to relax. Nettles had pink eye, but had told Righetti he could drive. After the no-hitter, Nettles kept his promise.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe actually got pulled over,\u201d Righetti said. \u201cA New Jersey state trooper pulled us over. We got a police escort to Atlantic City after that. The Beach Boys were playing on the beach. It was a whirlwind.\u201d<\/p>\n
Twenty five years later, it still is.<\/p>\n
I recently found this article from Jack Curry in 2008.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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