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DETROIT -- Add another near miss in this 2013 baseball season -- this time it was Detroits Anibal Sanchez falling just short of a no-hitter. Sanchezs bid was broken up with one out in the ninth inning Friday night when Minnesotas Joe Mauer hit a clean single up the middle. That was the only hit the right-hander allowed in the Tigers 6-0 victory over the Twins. It was the fourth one-hitter of Sanchezs career, to go along a no-hitter he threw as a rookie back in 2006. "Its not that I go to the mound and want to do something special, its just that I want to go nine innings, go deeper, get a good command, get a good game," Sanchez said. "When I come to the eighth inning, I think about it. But when I come to the ninth inning, its really tough with those guys." After seven no-hitters in 2012, baseball is without one so far this season. There have been plenty of close calls. Before Sanchez, four other pitchers had already thrown one-hitters in 2013, according to STATS. And that doesnt include Yu Darvish of Texas, Clay Buchholz of Boston and Adam Wainwright of St. Louis, all of whom had no-hitters in the eighth inning or later but couldnt finish the job. Darvish came within an out of a perfect game at Houston on April 2. He allowed a hit and didnt finish the game. Mauer, meanwhile, is making a habit of playing spoiler. Its the third time in his career hes broken up a no-hitter in the ninth inning, according to STATS. "Hes nasty, and he had everything working tonight," Mauer said. "Obviously, you know exactly what is happening, and you dont want to get no-hit. Im just up there trying to put the bat on the ball. He threw me a really good cutter and I was just able to square it up." It was Sanchezs second gem in about a month -- he set a franchise record with 17 strikeouts in eight marvelous innings against Atlanta on April 26. Sanchez (5-4) struck out 12 on Friday and allowed three walks -- staying remarkably calm on the mound all the while. "He called me out to the mound. In the middle of a no-hitter," Tigers catcher Alex Avila said. "Ive been in the middle of a no-hitter a few times, in the sixth, seventh inning, I dont think a pitchers ever called me out to the mound. ... He just forgot what signs we were using when theres a guy on second base." The home crowd gave Sanchez a standing ovation when he came out to start the ninth, and he immediately struck out Jamey Carroll. Mauer followed with a line drive up the middle -- to almost the same spot where Pittsburghs Josh Harrisons hit landed last year when he broke up a no-hit bid by Detroits Justin Verlander, also with two outs to go. Sanchez instinctively reached up for Mauers hit, but there was no chance for anyone -- least of all the pitcher -- to catch it. Sanchez then jerked his head back and spun in frustration, but with a bit of a smile on his face. "We got the hit, but that doesnt change anything," Mauer said. "He still blew us away." After Sanchez struck out the next two hitters to end the game, he shared a hug with Avila. Sanchez threw 130 pitches. "In the end, its the result of my work. I try to figure out, to put my ball in the strike zone," Sanchez said. "Its a nice result, and I take it." Jordan Zimmermann of Washington, Chris Sale of the Chicago White Sox, Shelby Miller of St. Louis and Jon Lester of Boston have also thrown one-hitters this season. Matt Harvey of the New York Mets allowed one hit in nine innings against the White Sox on May 7, but that game went 10 innings and he didnt finish it. The last-place Twins have lost 10 straight, and their starting lineup against Sanchez included four players hitting .212 or worse. Carroll drew a walk to lead off the game, and Sanchez issued another to Chris Parmelee in the second. Then the 29-year-old Sanchez, acquired by the Tigers from the Miami Marlins at midseason last year, settled into quite a groove. He fanned Mauer for the third out of the third, then struck out the side the fourth. Parmelee led off the fifth with a hard grounder up the middle that Sanchez was able to field himself. The following inning, Brian Dozier nearly broke up the no-hit bid when he hit a slow roller to shortstop Jhonny Peralta and almost beat the throw the first. Sanchez then struck out Carroll and Mauer to end the Minnesota sixth. With one out in the eighth, the Twins finally got another runner on base when Eduardo Escobar walked. That snapped a streak of 18 straight hitters retired by Sanchez, but he bounced back to retire pinch-hitter Ryan Doumit on a grounder to first. Pinch-hitter Chris Colabello followed, and with the crowd on its feet, he was called out on strikes. Miguel Cabrera hit a two-run single in the second, upping his RBI total to 57. Don Kelly added a two-run homer the following inning. Minnesotas Samuel Deduno (0-1) allowed six runs and nine hits in 5 1-3 innings. The most recent no-hitter thrown by a Tiger was in 2011, when Verlander tossed the second of his career. The Twins were no-hit last year by Jered Weaver of the Los Angeles Angels. NOTES: Sanchezs no-hitter as a rookie came Sept. 6, 2006, against Arizona. He was pitching for the Marlins then. ... Sanchez threw 121 pitches before being taken out of his 17-strikeout game against the Braves, but there was no way manager Jim Leyland was pulling him Friday while the no-hit bid was in progress.Jose Quintana Jersey .ca! Hi Kerry, Heres an interesting one. I know its common knowledge that all players are responsible for their sticks. We witnessed that when Zack Kassian hit Edmontons Sam Gagner in the face after a missed check. Kendall Graveman Jersey . The Cincinnati Reds remain perfect with their speedy rookie outfielder in the starting lineup. http://www.cubsauthentic.com/cubs-ryne-sandberg-jersey/ . Haas said he "felt a lot of pain" in his right shoulder when he slammed his racket to the ground in frustration after losing his serve at 3-3 in the first set. Kendall Graveman Cubs Jersey . U.S. District Judge Lorna G. Schofield in Manhattan agreed that lawyers on both sides could make their formal requests by Nov. 8. A hearing is scheduled for a day earlier. Jordan Siev, a lawyer for Rodriguez, wrote in a joint letter to the judge from lawyers on both sides that MLB lawyers planned to ask that the lawsuit be dismissed. Greg Maddux Cubs Jersey . Hargreaves began his career in 2008 with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and has played with the Edmonton Eskimos and last season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.IRVING, Texas -- Tony Romo pointed here and there, showing receiver Dez Bryant the best way to use a block on the first day of off-season practice. Thats about what he can do for now. The new $100 million quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys cant participate in workouts because of a procedure last month to remove a cyst on his back. So he had a chance Tuesday to show a little bit of what owner Jerry Jones made everyone believe would be an expanded role when he said Romo would be putting in "Peyton Manning-type time" to try to make Dallas a Super Bowl contender again. Romo looked a lot like a coach, even though hes loathe to acknowledge that his presence is anything more than the natural progression of a quarterback getting ready for his seventh full season as the starter. And he certainly rejects the conclusion drawn by many after Jones comments that his dedication has something to do with Dallas missing the playoffs three straight years and him having a 1-6 record in elimination games. "Im here. Im always at the facility," said Romo, speaking publicly for the first time since signing a six-year, $108 million extension with more guaranteed money ($55 million) than Super Bowl winner Joe Flacco of Baltimore. "If you talk to any of the coaches or anybody Im around, Ive been a gym rat since Ive been here." The question of golf always comes up with Romo this time of year, and, well, he hasnt been playing as much because hes been recovering from what he said was a minor outpatient procedure for a cyst that was "kind of annoying" but not cancerous. The procedure was first reported by The Dallas Morning News. The 33-year-old Romo will miss three weeks of practice but could participate in minicamp starting June 11. He will be ready for training camp in July. "Nobody was real concerned about it," coach Jason Garrett said. "We felt like it was better to get it taken care of sooner rather than later. He was doing everything in our off-season program. Hes back to doing a lot of that stuff right now as hes getting better." Backup Kyle Orton will take most of the snaps in Romos absence. He signed as a free agent last year but played in just one game, a blowout loss to Chicago. The Cowboys also have second-year player Nick Stephens and undrafted rookie Dalton Williams on the roster. A healthyy Romo, now the highest-paid player in franchise history, will be a huge factor for Garrett, who is unlikely to return if Dallas doesnt make the playoffs in 2013.dddddddddddd The last time Romo missed significant playing time, former coach Wade Phillips was fired and replaced by Garrett in the middle of a 6-10 season in 2010. Romo was out 10 games with a broken collarbone. Romo played through a broken rib early in the 2011 season and stayed healthy last year. Both seasons ended with losses to NFC East rivals in finales with playoff berths on the line. "Weve always been very cautious this time of year with our players, making sure theyre 100 per cent healthy and get them back when theyre ready to go," Garrett said. "Theres going to be plenty of work once he comes back, a lot of training camp work prior to that first game." The Cowboys and Romo could have done what the Ravens and Flacco did -- play out the final season of a contract and see how it goes. Baltimore had to pay plenty, giving Flacco $120.6 million over six years with $52 million guaranteed. While the total value of Romos deal is lower, he and the Cowboys were heavily criticized for a comparable deal with more guaranteed money despite Flacco having eight more playoff wins, in five straight trips to the post-season. "We were 8-8 the last couple of years," Romo said. "That doesnt sit well with me. I dont think Im an 8-8 quarterback. I dont think this organization is comfortable being 8-8. Were going to do everything we can as coaches, players and in this building to change that." Romos interpretation of his owners line about Peyton Manning is that Denvers quarterback, a former Super Bowl winner with Indianapolis, has always had an unusually direct relationship with coaches. Its not that Romo and Garrett havent worked closely the six seasons theyve been together. But Romo figures its natural that hell have more to say about the game plan rather than just waiting around Monday and Tuesday for it to show up. "The older you get, you develop that a little bit as a quarterback," Romo said. "If you do some good things in the past that allow you to show, then you can have a little more of that. Thats part of the growth that takes shape." He was showing some of that during his idle time on the practice field. ' ' '