CHICAGO -- Francisco Liriano had never thrown a shutout, had never thrown a complete game, but on Tuesday he threw the first no-hitter of the 2011 season to lead the Twins to a 1-0 victory over the White Sox.
It was an unlikely no-no, as Liriano struggled with his control, walking six, but the White Sox simply couldn't muster a hit against him on a chilly night at U.S. Cellular Field.
It marked the first no-hitter for the Twins since Sept. 11, 1999, when Eric Milton tossed one against the Angels at the Metrodome. It was also the fifth since the Twins moved to Minneapolis: Scott Erickson threw one against the Brewers on April 27, 1994; Dean Chance tossed one against the Indians on Aug. 25, 1967; and Jack Kralick had one on Aug. 26, 1962, against the Royals.
Liriano nearly lost the no-no with two outs in the sixth inning, when Carlos Quentin hit a hard ground ball down the third-base line, but Danny Valencia made a great play and retired Quentin on the long throw from foul territory.
Liriano also received some good fortune in the eighth inning, as Gordon Beckham grounded into an inning-ending double-play but appeared safe, as the throw from second baseman Alexi Casilla was offline.
The Twins scored their lone run in the fourth inning on a shot from Jason Kubel on a 1-2 slider from right-hander Edwin Jackson that caught too much of the plate. The home run was Kubel's third of the season.
Jackson, who threw a similar no-hitter on June 25 of last season when he walked eight batters and hit another, allowed just that one run and six hits over eight innings, but was saddled with the loss.