Former College Hoopster Koufax Hurled MLB No-Hitter Four Years in a Row
In the aftermath of no-hitters for the Los Angeles Dodgers by Josh Beckett and Clayton Kershaw plus the San Francisco Giants by Tim Lincecum, it's time to take a look at ex-college hoopsters who went on to hurl a no-no at the major-league level. Brooklyn native Sandy Koufax attended Cincinnati one year on a combination baseball/basketball scholarship under coach Ed Jucker in both sports before signing a pro baseball contract. Koufax was the third-leading scorer with 9.7 ppg for the Bearcats' 12-2 freshman squad in 1953-54 before hurling no-hitters in four straight seasons the first half of the 1960s.
Two former Bucknell products - Bob Keegan and Christy Mathewson - are among the following former college basketball players who went on to toss a MLB no-hitter (listed in reverse order):
Date | No-Hit Pitcher | Team | Opponent | Score | Basketball College |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
5-14-1977 | Jim Colborn | Kansas City Royals | Texas Rangers | 6-0 | Whittier CA |
8-24-1975 | Ed Halicki | San Francisco Giants | New York Mets | 6-0 | Monmouth NJ |
7-30-1973 | Jim Bibby | Texas Rangers | Oakland A's | 6-0 | Fayetteville State NC |
8-14-1971 | Bob Gibson | St. Louis Cardinals | Pittsburgh Pirates | 11-0 | Creighton |
9-18-1968 | Ray Washburn | St. Louis Cardinals | San Francisco Giants | 2-0 | Whitworth WA |
6-10-1966 | Sonny Siebert | Cleveland Indians | Washington Senators | 2-0 | Missouri |
9-9-1965 | Sandy Koufax | Los Angeles Dodgers | Chicago Cubs | 1-0* | Cincinnati |
6-4-1964 | Sandy Koufax | Los Angeles Dodgers | Philadelphia Phillies | 3-0 | Cincinnati |
5-11-1963 | Sandy Koufax | Los Angeles Dodgers | San Francisco Giants | 8-0 | Cincinnati |
6-30-1962 | Sandy Koufax | Los Angeles Dodgers | New York Mets | 5-0 | Cincinnati |
8-20-1957 | Bob Keegan | Chicago White Sox | Washington Senators | 6-0 | Bucknell |
6-12-1954 | Jim Wilson | Milwaukee Braves | Philadelphia Phillies | 2-0 | San Diego State |
9-3-1947 | Bill McCahan | Philadelphia Athletics | Washington Senators | 3-0 | Duke |
8-21-1926 | Ted Lyons | Chicago White Sox | Boston Red Sox | 6-0 | Baylor |
5-5-1917 | Ernie Koob | St. Louis Browns | Chicago White Sox | 1-0 | Western Michigan |
6-13-1905 | Christy Mathewson | New York Giants | Chicago Cubs | 1-0 | Bucknell |
7-15-1901 | Christy Mathewson | New York Giants | St. Louis Cardinals | 5-0 | Bucknell |
*Perfect game.