Whatever
Happened...
Question: Whatever happened to Bo Belinsky, the roguish pitcher who played as hard as he partied, endearing himself to Hawaii Islanders fans? Flamboyant ex-Islanders
and Angels pitcher
Bo Belinsky now
selling cars in Las VegasAnswer: For the last 12 years, the former Islanders and Los Angeles Angels pitcher has been living in Las Vegas, selling cars for Findlay Toyota and doing charity work. He overlooks the city's glitz, he says, by avoiding the strip.
"Vegas has been good to me," says Belinsky, 63. "You have to take it with relish or without. I take it straight, no relish." Poor health has not squashed Belinsky's wit -- he was known for dishing out one-liners as fast as curve balls.
When he heard the Star-Bulletin was trying to locate him, "I thought the police was looking for me, or something. I guess I'm gone, but not forgotten."
"This is the longest job I've had in one place," he says. "I'm lucky I found a good job."
Healthwise, though, Lady Luck hasn't been as kind to Belinsky. For the last three years, he has been battling cancer of the bladder, as well as hip problems.
But his renewed faith in God and church fellowship lift his spirits, he says.
"Being a born-again Christian is no whimsical thing. When it happens, it happens. Can you imagine to come to Las Vegas to find Jesus Christ?" he said.
Does he miss baseball, or ever throw a ball for fun?
"Nah, I'm not nostalgic about it. I don't play even for fun."
The Angels sent Belinsky to Hawaii to play with the Islanders in 1964. He calls his three seasons here some of the best games of his career.
"I went kicking and screaming, considering it a demotion, but I had the pleasure to pitch a no-hitter for the Islanders in '68. That was almost as exciting as pitching a no-hitter for a major-league team."
The games were played at the old Honolulu Stadium, and vendors sold a fruity drink called "Manoa Mist," he recalls with nostalgia.
"There will always be a place in my heart for that mystical, beautiful island."
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