No-hitter sparks transformation in Francisco Liriano
Less than two months ago, Minnesota Twins left-hander Francisco Liriano pitched himself into baseball’s history books with the 265th no-hitter of all-time.
Clinging to just one run of support that he received in the fourth inning, Liriano collaborated with the defense behind him to hold the Chicago White Sox hitless for the 1-0 win.
“To be honest, I didn’t think about it much at all when I was out there pitching,” Liriano said of the no-hitter.
While Liriano’s no-hitter could certainly be described as unconventional – considering he threw just 66 of his 123 pitches for strikes, walked six batters compared to two strikeouts, and had never thrown a complete game in his career before that game – there’s no taking away his special night. After all, he had just accomplished something that 99 percent of pitchers in baseball history have never done.
“When I got to the last hitter I got a little nervous, but other than that it was a fun night for me and I enjoyed it,” the Dominican Republic native told The Good Point.
Interestingly enough for Liriano, though, is that the no-hitter has been special for more than one reason, as it symbolized the turnaround point of his season.
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In five starts prior to the no-hitter, Liriano went 1-4 with an ugly 9.13 ERA in 23.2 innings. He walked the same amount of batters that he struck out, gave up more than one hit per inning pitched, and opponents were managing a .281 average and .897 OPS off of him. He lasted beyond the fifth inning in just one of those starts, and allowed less than three earned runs but a single time as well.
Needless to say, there was cause for concern regarding Minnesota’s top pitcher.
In his six starts since throwing the no-hitter, though, Liriano has looked like a completely different pitcher, going 2-3 with a 2.75 ERA, 38 strikeouts and just 13 walks in 36 innings.
Through his first five starts following the May 3 gem, Liriano allowed just 17 hits before giving up eight against the Giants on Sunday in his sixth. He even came close to another no-hitter on June 12.
“I think my location of my pitches got better. I’ve been walking less guys, but other than that, everything’s been getting better,” Liriano said.
More importantly since throwing the no-hitter, Liriano has been giving his team a better chance to win with every start. He has lasted beyond the fifth inning in three of his five starts, and allowed two earned runs or less in four of them as well. Opponents have mustered just a .167 average and .509 OPS against him, and he established a new season high with nine strikeouts in two of his starts.
Again, Liriano credited his improved command as the reason for turning his season around.
“Just location. Using my pitches now instead of using just one pitch in a game, but mostly just locating my fastball better,” he said.
Liriano’s turnaround has been a welcome change for a Twins team that has struggled more often than not this season. A main issue has been a lack of offense, which showed in Liriano’s three losses after the no-hitter where he received just five total runs of support in those starts.
After limping to a 17-36 record in the first two months of the season, though, things have been looking brighter for the Twins of late. It’s a much needed glimmer of hope for the team that until just recently sat dead last in the AL Central after winning the division in 2010.
Through the first 18 games of June, the Twins have posted a 14-4 record and won every series they’ve faced (including three-game sets against the division-leading Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers).
Now a game ahead of Kansas City for fourth place in their division, the Twins are starting to march up the standings with their strong play. To Liriano, the mood in the clubhouse has stayed relaxed all season, but the team is more motivated now to continue to boost their number in the win column.
“We just try to have fun every day, take it one game at a time, and come here and play hard.”
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