The Houston Astros are in the midst of a playoff race in the American League West. They got some great news about their veteran ace Justin Verlander on Sunday after his first rehab start. Verlander has dealt with a neck injury but is set to make his return just in time to join the playoff push.
“Physically, I felt good,” Verlander told Ken Powtak of the Associated Press. “Checked all the boxes I needed to (Saturday). I was able to throw everything, but execution wasn’t as good as I would like. I try not to be too nitpicky. Health is first and foremost, the hard thing with coming back on rehab starts is you don’t have as many starts to fine-tune all your mechanics like we do in spring training. You have to be a bit critical in execution and try to get better next time out.”
Astros' manager Joe Espada said that they want to get him one more rehab start before getting Verlander back to the pros. In 10 starts this season, Verlander has a 3.95 ERA and a 102 ERA+. Their opponent in the AL West race is the Mariners, who have one of the deepest staffs in baseball. Added pitching depth will help along their path to the playoffs.
Astros' chances of making the playoffs
The Houston Astros dropped to 12-24 after losing to the New York Yankees on May 8. They had the second-worst record in the American League and were eight-and-a-half games behind the Rangers for the division lead. Their playoff odds bottomed out at 31.3% after that loss, according to Fangraphs.
Since then they have a 50-31 record, five games better than any team in the American League. Their playoff odds are now 67.6 percent and they have powered past the Rangers and are tied for the division lead with the Mariners. The addition of Justin Verlander will help steady their pitching rotation and give them a great chance to put away the division again.
The Astros have made the American League Championship Series in each of the last seven seasons. That streak started when they traded for Verlander at what appeared to be the end of his career. He quickly became an Astros legend, helping them win the World Series for the first time in franchise history in 2017.
With Verlander back in the fold and Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, and Yordan Alvarez in the middle of the lineup, the Astros will instill fear in American League teams if they make it. They must have Verlander back to make their rotation a playoff-caliber group. With Ronel Blanco, Framber Valdez, and Hunter Brown alongside the future Hall of Famer, they can make a run.
The recent reports from Justin Verlander's first rehab start should have American League fans fearing another deep run from the Astros. If he remains healthy, he will be fresh for the playoffs and has an incredible amount of experience and success. He may not be Cy Young winner Justin Verlander anymore, but he can turn back the clock to get the Astros back to the World Series.
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