Tigers' Verlander throws no-hitter over Jays

Published November 20, 2014

TORONTO (Reuters) - Detroit Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander threw the second no-hitter in Major League Baseball this week, facing the minimum 27 batters in shutting down the Toronto Blue Jays 9-0 Saturday.

It was the second career no-hitter for Verlander, who first accomplished the feat in 2007 against the Milwaukee Brewers, and MLB's second this week after Minnesota's Francisco Liriano tossed the season's first no-hitter on Tuesday.

"It really helped having gone through this before. I was able to really calm my nerves a bit and maintain my focus," Verlander, who was mobbed by his team mates after the game's final out, said in an on-field interview.

"Obviously there is some adrenaline, that's why my velocity jumped up but for the most part I was able to calm myself down which was good."

Verlander allowed only one baserunner, J.P. Arencibia, who walked in the eighth inning after the hard-throwing right-hander had retired the first 22 batters he faced.

Arencibia, however, was retired on a double-play grounder hit by Edwin Encarnacion that ended the eighth.

Verlander, whose fastball touched 100 miles per hour, struck out Rajai Davis on a breaking pitch to complete the gem and unleash a celebration at the pitcher's mound as the Tiger players and coaches rushed out from the dugout.

The Detroit Tigers ace, who threw just 108 pitches, 74 of them for strikes, improved his record to 3-3 for the season.

It was the first no-hitter spun against the Blue Jays since 1991 by Hall of Fame fastballer Nolan Ryan.

(Writing by Larry Fine in New York, Editing by Frank Pingue)

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