Scott Erickson

He became the third Twins pitcher, after Jack Kralick in 1962 and Dean Chance in 1967, to pitch a no-hitter; the former's had been the last no-hitter in a Twins home game, that game having taken place at the Metrodome's predecessor, Metropolitan Stadium.

Erickson's no-hitter was thought to be impossible on The Metrodome's artificial turf and home run reputation.

Scott Gavin Erickson (born February 2, 1968) is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher.

He played for the Minnesota Twins, Baltimore Orioles, New York Mets, Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Yankees over 15 seasons.

He was a member of the World Series champion Twins.

Erickson was born in Long Beach, California.

He was highly involved in sports during high school while he attended Homestead High School in Cupertino, California.

He played baseball, soccer, football, and basketball.

He was CCS Junior of the Year in baseball.

He was drafted by the New York Mets in 1986 out of Homestead High School; the Houston Astros in 1987 and Toronto Blue Jays in 1988 out of San Jose City College; and in 1989 he was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 4th round of the amateur draft out of the University of Arizona.

He finally signed his first pro contract with Minnesota.

After 27 minor league starts, Erickson rose to the major leagues in his second season of professional baseball with the Class AA Orlando Sun Rays.

He was on a five-game win streak with a record of 8–3 in the first half as an All Star in the Southern League.

After completing his secondary education, he graduated from San Jose City College in 1988 with an AA degree in business.

He was a Junior College 1st Team All American at San Jose.

He then majored in accounting with a minor in psychology at the University of Arizona.

Erickson was inducted into the Arizona Wildcat Hall of Fame after just one year of pitching at Arizona.

Erickson set a school record for wins with an 18–3 record, as he led the country in wins (18), innings pitched (175), and complete games (14).

Those impressive numbers earned him a unanimous First Team All-American honor.

His teammates at Arizona included Trevor Hoffman, Kevin Long, and J. T. Snow.

In 1989, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League.

Erickson began his professional career after being selected in the major league draft four times.

Erickson finished 1990 with a combined record of 16–7 between Double-A and the majors; he went 5–0 in September and tied Dave Stewart for American League Pitcher of the Month.

In 1991, Erickson posted a record of 12–2 with a 1.39 ERA in the first half season and was awarded the American League Pitcher of the Month for May and June.

The Twins went on to win the World Series, and Erickson finished second to Roger Clemens for the American League Cy Young Award and received votes for the American League Most Valuable Player Award.

The following season, Erickson started 32 games, going 13–12 with 5 complete games.

He regressed the following year, however, leading the majors with 19 losses.

On April 27, 1994, Erickson no-hit the Milwaukee Brewers 6–0 at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, the first no-hitter ever pitched in that stadium.

In 1995, he was traded to the Baltimore Orioles.

Before being traded to Baltimore, Erickson was 4–6 with a 5.95 ERA for the Twins.

After joining the Orioles, Erickson turned in 9 wins in 16 starts for Baltimore.

Between both teams, he finished 13–10 with 7 complete games.

In 1996, Erickson won 13 games for the second straight year with 6 complete games and 100 strikeouts for the 6th straight year.

In 1997, Erickson turned in his best season since 1992, winning 16 games with a 3.69 ERA in 33 starts.

In 1998, Erickson once again won 16 games for the Orioles while leading the league in complete games (11) and innings pitched (251.1).

In 1999, Erickson went 15–12 with a 4.81 ERA while leading the league in shutouts (3).

He also led the majors in ground balls induced with 454.

On March 3, 2000, Erickson had bone chips removed from his elbow and was out of action eight weeks.

Erickson made 16 starts for the Orioles in 2000.

He later signed a five-year, $32 million contract with Baltimore through 2003.