Justin Verlander Returns, Astros Win 5-3 Over Nationals

He wasn’t vintage Justin Verlander, but it didn’t matter. The Astros have been in sore need of a boost to its already thin starting rotation, especially in light of a lackluster 6-14 start on the season. Entering Friday’s game, only the Rockies (6.33), Twins (5.32), and Nationals (5.25) — Houston’s current opponent — had a higher ERA from its starters than the Astros (5.05). Even with Verlander on a roughly 80-85 pitch count, it wouldn’t take much to bolster one of the worst starting staffs in baseball thus far.

Thankfully, Verlander held up his end of the bargain with six innings of two-run ball, limiting Washington to four hits while striking out four and no walks. While he didn’t possess his most overpowering stuff — only four whiffs on 40 swings — Verlander did enough to limit damage when it did occur. Only an RBI single by Ildemaro Vargas and a solo home run by Riley Adams, whose double set up Vargas’s single in the first place, were the only blemishes on the right-hander’s 2024 debut.

The Astros’ lineup also held up its end of the bargain, striking early against MacKenzie Gore with a three-run second inning. Three consecutive no-out doubles from Kyle Tucker, Yainer Díaz, and Jeremy Peña followed by a single from Chas McCormick put Houston ahead and gave some margin for Verlander to work with. Gore would pitch through the fourth inning, although he didn’t surrender another run. Chas McCormick would add another run to make it 4-1, thanks to his sacrifice fly with the bases loaded against Robert Garcia.

With Verlander pitching through the sixth inning, the Astros had another chance to deploy its three-headed bullpen monster in Bryan Abreu, Ryan Pressly, and Josh Hader. Of course, that trio has been more intimidating in theory than the actual results on the field. Besides Luis Garcia’s single, Abreu made short work of Washington’s lineup. Mauricio Dubón’s RBI single cushioned the lead — now 5-2 — for Pressly, who also held Washington scoreless. Vargas’s single was the only mark against him.

Unfortunately, it got a tad bit interesting in the ninth inning as Hader’s struggles to start the season continued. CJ Abrams’ leadoff triple to start the bottom half and Jesse Winker’s subsequent sacrifice fly to drive him in wasn’t a great start for Houston’s prized free agent signing. Now 5-3, Lane Thomas’ single and Garcia’s walk applied some additional pressure, and the doubt started to creep in. I mean, the first 20 games haven’t inspired a lot of confidence in this club. With the winning run at the plate and only one out, it didn’t take much imagination to envision this ending poorly. Thankfully, Hader buckled down to strike out Joey Meneses and Nick Senzel to end the threat and finally put the Astros back in the win column.

Now 7-14 on the season, the Astros hope Ronel Blanco can continue his strong start to the season on Saturday opposite of Trevor Williams. Let’s see if this most recent victory can lead to a meaningful winning streak to help right the ship.