Liriano flirts with second no-hitter

Francisco Liriano was six outs from his second no-hitter of the season, when a long delay during the bottom of the seventh inning derailed his feat.

The Minnesota Twins didn't mind. They're just happy to have the dominant Liriano back.

Liriano sat in the dugout for nearly a half-hour before Adrian Beltre led off the eighth with a clean single, but he allowed only three baserunners yesterday and pitched the Twins past the Texas Rangers, 6-1.

"Everything was working for me," Liriano said.

Liriano (4-6), who held the Chicago White Sox hitless in a wild effort May 3, was perfect through the sixth against the high-scoring Rangers.

"I felt better today. Way better," Liriano said, comparing this to his no-hitter.

Elvis Andrus was the first Texas player to reach base, on rookie third baseman Luke Hughes' fielding error with one out in the seventh on a play that could have been ruled a hit.

The Twins then scored five times in the bottom half after an injury to Rangers starter Matt Harrison, an inning that took 29 minutes. When Liriano returned to the mound, he fell behind 3-and-0 before Beltre hit a hard single to left-centerfield.

Still, Liriano matched a season high by striking out nine in eight innings, allowing two hits without a walk.

Red Sox 14 Blue Jays 1: Jon Lester pitched two-hit ball over eight innings, and David Ortiz and Kevin Youkilis each homered and drove in four runs as visiting Boston teed off on the Blue Jays for the second straight day and won its ninth straight.

Rays 9, Orioles 6: Johnny Damon hit his 27th career leadoff home run and Evan Longoria had an inside-the-park homer for visiting Tampa Bay.

White Sox 5, Athletics 4: Adam Dunn hit a three-run homer for host Chicago.

Mariners 7, Tigers 3: Felix Hernandez pitched eight strong innings and Miguel Olivo homered twice for visiting Seattle.

Braves 4, Astros 1: Tommy Hanson struck out a career-high 14 in seven innings, and Brian McCann and Dan Uggla hit two-run homers as visiting Atlanta won its sixth straight.

Phillies 4, Cubs 3: Ryan Howard went 3-for-3 with three RBIs, and Roy Oswalt snapped a four-game losing streak.

Brewers 4, Cardinals 3: Prince Fielder hit a go-ahead homer in the sixth for host Milwaukee.

Diamondbacks 5, Marlins 1: Daniel Hudson won for the seventh time in eight decisions for visiting Arizona.

Dodgers 10, Rockies 8: James Loney had a grand slam and Matt Kemp hit his NL-leading 20th homer for visiting Los Angeles.

Giants 4, Reds 2: Aubrey Huff had three hits and two RBIs for host San Francisco.

Nationals 2, Padres 0: Danny Espinosa hit a go-ahead sacrifice fly in the ninth as visiting Washington won its third straight.