I remember the Righetti no-hitter well. Because it was blacked out on television here.
Going out onto the street was like stepping out of a time machine into the 50s. Everywhere I looked, people were crowded around transistor radios, listening to the game and yelling their heads off.
I remember Abbott's no-hitter really well too, because, well, he had one arm. Interesting to watch.
I missed Gooden's. But I remember my reaction to hearing "Dwight Gooden pitched a no-hitter tonight" on the eleven o'clock news-- it was "Get out of here, he did NOT..."
The Fourth of July aspect of Righetti's no-hitter made it surreal, especially since July 4th also happens to be George Steinbrenner's birthday.
Righetti's no-hitter was not the most memorable accomplishment in his career, in my mind.
After he became the team's closer I remember a game in which he pitched very poorly, blew a save, and was taken out of the game. He was so p!ssed off at himself that as the manager came walking out of the dugout to replace him, he turned and heaved the baseball out into the right-field stands at Yankee Stadium. I couldn't believe what I had just witnessed -- until that moment, I would have sworn that it was physically impossible for a human being to throw an object that far. LOL!