Bo Belinsky

Robert Belinsky (December 7, 1936 – November 23, 2001) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played for the Los Angeles Angels, Philadelphia Phillies, Houston Astros, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball from 1962 to 1970. Belinsky became a local celebrity as a rookie with the Angels when he won his first four starts, including a no-hitter. Belinsky is one of only two pitchers in Angels franchise history to start his career with a four-game winning streak or better, the other being Jered Weaver. Belinsky was born on the Lower East Side in Manhattan in New York City. His father was a Polish-American Catholic from New Jersey and his mother, Anna (née Polnoff), was the daughter of Jewish immigrants from Ukraine. When he was a child, his Yiddish-speaking grandmother called him bubelah. He was raised mostly in Trenton, New Jersey, where he became a "street rat" and one-time pool hustler. He attended Trenton Central High School. "If I'd known I was gonna pitch a no-hitter today, I would have gotten a haircut." Belinsky was already notorious as a minor leaguer for his night life during several seasons in the Orioles farm system; however, his career and life changed when the Angels picked him in the 1962 minor league draft.