Justin Verlander had a rather forgettable start to the Houston Astros' MLB playoffs series with the Seattle Mariners.

The veteran got the starting nod for Game 1 of the ALDS, but to say he was a disappointment would be an understatement. Verlander struggled mightily and put the Astros in a big hole that's difficult to come back from. Before he came off the mound in four innings pitched, the Mariners have scored six runs for a 6-3 lead.

As Daniel Kramer of MLB.com noted, the six earned runs against Verlander is the most he has allowed in his 32 postseason outings. It is actually tied with another performance, which he recorded in Game 1 of the 2006 World Series. Yikes!

The decision to start Justin Verlander against the Mariners was not really a surprising decision. After all, this 2022 season, he went 5-1 against the Seattle franchise.

Considering his history with their latest foes in the MLB playoffs, starting Verlander would have been the right call in any other day. Unfortunately, the 39-year-old simply didn't perform what was expected of him. He knew it would be hard, but he certainly didn't predict the difficulty to be at that level.

It remains to be seen if Verlander will get another chance to redeem himself in the ALDS against the Mariners. The series is long and he could be called upon once again, but he definitely needs to be better prepared when that happens.