Sept. 14 – The Houston Astros haven’t punched their ticket to the playoffs yet.
But for Justin Verlander, the playoffs might as well start on Saturday night.
Verlander will take the field in centerfield of a three-game series against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim, California, looking to reverse a long slump and audition for a spot in the Astros’ postseason rotation.
The right-handed Verlander (3-6, 5.30 ERA) will face Angels left-hander Tyler Anderson (10-12, 3.50 ERA).
Alex Bregman and Yordan Alvarez hit homers and Yusei Kikuchi pitched seven solid innings, leading the Astros to a 5-3 win on Friday.
With the win, the Astros (79-68) maintain a 4 1/2-game lead over the Seattle Mariners in the AL West. The Mariners came back late in the game to beat the Texas Rangers 5-4.
The Astros have advanced to the AL Championship Series or higher in each of the last seven seasons, with Verlander going 10–7 in 22 postseason games (21 starts) with an ERA, points allowed rate of 3.74.
But Verlander’s spot in a potential playoff rotation next month is in jeopardy. The 41-year-old, who leads active pitchers with 260 regular-season wins and 3,405 strikeouts, is 3-6 with a 5.30 ERA in 14 starts this year. He allowed eight runs on eight hits in three innings of a 12-6 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday.
Verlander, who missed more than two months with a neck injury, is 0-4 with a 9.68 ERA in four starts since returning.
“I wouldn’t bet against a guy with that pedigree and how good that guy is over a long period of time,” Astros manager Joe Espada said after Sunday’s game. “He’s going to have some problems.”
The Angels (60-87) have been in evaluation mode for another disappointing season. Los Angeles will miss the playoffs for the 10th consecutive season and will need to go at least 7-8 to avoid tying the franchise record set by the then-California Angels in 1968 and tied in 1980.
Angels manager Ron Washington was frustrated Friday with shortstop Zach Nieto and right fielder Jordin Adams, who gave up outs in the sixth and eighth innings, respectively.
“It’s for everybody,” Washington said, “You can’t lose focus knowing the game is over.”
Verlander has a 16-11 record with an ERA of 3.33 against the Angels in 32 regular season games in his career. He did not consider the decision on June 9, when he made his final start before suffering a neck injury. In that game, he gave up four runs in five innings as the Astros lost 9-7.
Anderson did not mind that decision in his most recent start on Sept. 7, as he allowed two earned runs in five innings in the Angels’ 6-4 loss to the Rangers. He is 1-3 with a 6.14 ERA in nine starts against the Astros, including a 1-1 record with a 3.21 ERA in two starts this season.
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