CLEVELAND, Ohio — Cliff Lee remembers his only encounter with Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry being brief. The two pitchers met at this season's All-Star game in Yankee Stadium.

"I think I shook his hand," Lee said. "I guess you could call that meeting him. I didn't really get to talk to him."

On Monday, Lee was in Perry's company again.

Exactly one year after being brought back from the minor leagues, Lee pitched a five-hitter for his second career shutout and his 20th win to lead the Cleveland Indians to a 5-0 victory over the Chicago White Sox.

Lee (20-2) is the first Indians pitcher to reach 20 wins since Perry, known for throwing a spitball, went 21-13 in 1974.

Following the game, Cleveland's players locked the clubhouse doors and celebrated Lee's milestone, which put a resounding stamp on his turnaround season.

"We gave him a little toast," catcher Kelly Shoppach said. "He deserved it."

With a chance to also join Hall of Famers Bob Feller and Bob Lemon as Cleveland's 20-game winners, Lee shut down the hard-hitting, Central-leading White Sox. He gave up two singles to open the first before retiring 21 straight and finishing his fourth complete game.

"That's the best I've seen him throw against us in some time," said Chicago manager Ozzie Guillen, whose club dropped into a tie for first with Minnesota. "He's a 20-game winner for a reason. We got to him early and had an opportunity. Then he shut us down, just dominated us."

After he got Carlos Quentin to ground into a game-ending double play, Lee punched his fist into his glove and hugged Shoppach as fireworks boomed above Progressive Field. And then, as he has done 19 other times this season, Lee got in line to exchange handshakes with his teammates.

First baseman Ryan Garko flipped the ball to Lee, and he headed to the dugout as a video tribute from Perry and Feller was shown on the stadium scoreboard.

"It's nice to get this behind me and not have to answer questions about matching Gaylord Perry," Lee said in a typically stoic tone. "I'm glad I got it over with on the first try. It's a good feeling, especially not giving up any runs."

Ineffective for the first fourth months of 2007, Lee was sent back to the minors last July, a startling downfall for a pitcher who had won 46 games over the previous three years. In his final start before the demotion, Lee was booed off the field and sarcastically tipped his cap at fans who were sick of seeing him.