Toronto ? Justin Verlander threw his second career no-hitter and the second in the big leagues this week, leading the Detroit Tigers to a 9-0 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday.

Verlander barely missed a perfect game. The only runner he allowed came with one out in the eighth inning when J.P. Arencibia walked on a full count, with Verlander’s 12th pitch to the rookie just an inch or two outside.

Minnesota’s Francisco Liriano pitched a no-hitter against the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night.

Verlander (3-3) struck out 12 in his first no-hitter against the Milwaukee Brewers on June 12, 2007. This time, he fanned Rajai Davis to end it for his fourth strikeout of the game. The overpowering right-hander threw 108 pitches, 74 for strikes, against a Blue Jays lineup missing ailing slugger Jose Bautista.

“Just as good as the first,” Verlander said.

Blue Jays rookie David Cooper popped to second on Verlander’s first pitch of the ninth. John McDonald followed with a grounder to second. With the crowd of 23,453 standing and cheering, Davis ended it by striking out swinging on a 2-2 pitch from the 2006 AL Rookie of the Year.

Verlander calmly pumped his fist and smiled, then shared a hug with catcher Alex Avila before being mobbed by teammates near the mound. He was doused with a bucket of ice water by reliever Jose Valverde.

“I felt like tonight I had really good control of my fastball, and I just used that to my advantage,” Verlander said. “My breaking ball was surprisingly my worst pitch. That’s probably indicative of why I didn’t have many strikeouts. I was just able to move the ball around and keep guys off balance and get some quick outs.”