Dock Ellis, 63; pitched no-hitter, won 138 games in the majors

Dock Ellis, who once said he pitched a no-hitter for Pittsburgh under the influence of LSD and later fiercely spoke out against drug and alcohol addiction, died Friday. He was 63.

His wife, Hjordis, said he died at USC Medical Center in Los Angeles. "It's a tremendous loss to the family," she said. "He's been struggling for about a year with the end stages of liver disease."

"I've been in this business for 40 years, and there was never a more standup guy," former agent Tom Reich said.

Mr. Ellis had a career 138-119 record with a 3.46 ERA from 1968 through 1979, spending most of his career with the Pirates. He went 19-9 in 1971 when Pittsburgh won the World Series, and made his only All-Star appearance that summer - and what a show it was. Mr. Ellis was tagged for one of the most memorable home runs in All-Star history, Reggie Jackson's monster shot off the light tower at Tiger Stadium.

In 1970, Mr. Ellis overcame eight walks to pitch a no-hitter in the first game of a doubleheader at San Diego. Several years after he retired, the right-hander said he was high on LSD during the victory.

At a time when drugs, race, and other issues in American society were colliding with baseball, Mr. Ellis often was at the forefront. He spoke his mind and stood by what he said while playing with the likes of Willie Stargell, Dave Parker, and Roberto Clemente.

Mr. Ellis played on four Pirates teams that won the National League East and also pitched for the New York Yankees, Oakland, Texas, and the New York Mets.

Mr. Ellis was traded with Willie Randolph and Ken Brett from the Pirates to the Yankees for Doc Medich after the 1975 season. He was 17-8 in 1976 for the Yankees and won a game in the American League championship series against Kansas City.

The Yankees hired Mr. Ellis in 1986 to offer guidance to their minor leaguers on drug and alcohol abuse.