Liriano completed the first no-hitter of the 2011 baseball season when he no-hit the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night in Chicago. After a 2010 season in which six pitchers completed the feat, Liriano becomes the first to do so in 2011.
Liriano battled control issues at times throughout the outing, largely the reason for his 123 pitches. While he may not have given up a hit, he did manage to walk six batters.
The no-hitter was completed when Adam Dunn lined out to shortstop to finish things off.
As it always seems to happen, Liriano was helped out by a couple of defensive gems. The first, and probably the biggest, came in the seventh inning. Third baseman Danny Valencia made a slick backhanded stop on the third-base line before firing a bullet to first to retire Carlos Quentin by half of a step. Then, in the ninth inning, shortstop Matt Tolbert charged a slow roller on the infield and was able to get Brent Morel at first behind a terrific pick from first baseman Justin Morneau.
Liriano was also helped by three double plays.
Coincidentally, Edwin Jackson was the starting pitcher for the White Sox. It was Jackson who threw a no-hitter against the Tampa Bay Rays despite issuing eight free passes last year as a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
It was also the first Minnesota no-hitter since Eric Milton no-hit the the Angels on Sept. 11, 1999.
