Houston Astros Officially Activate Star Ace Ahead of Finale Against Red Sox

The Houston Astros have some much needed help coming back to their rotation.

Mar 28, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Astros starting pitcher Justin Verlander (35) waves before the game against the New York Yankees at Minute Maid Park / Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

After some speculation about when Justin Verlander might be returning to the Houston Astros, it has now been made official.

As expected, the future Hall of Famer has been activated on Wednesday. He'll be getting the start in the finale against the Boston Red Sox, returning to the Major League mound for the first time since June 9. Following that outing, he experienced some pain in his neck that caused the Astros to push back his next start before ultimately putting him on the injured list.

Verlander hasn't quite been the model of consistency or durability that he's shown throughout his career, but that's to be expected from a 41-year-old with 19 MLB seasons under his belt.

This was the second time he's been on the IL this year, the reason why he's only been able to make 10 starts.

But, that is now in the past and Houston is hoping the superstar can slot into their newly formed six-man rotation with him back in the mix and start getting this team ready to make another deep playoff run.

He'll take the place of recently optioned reliever Seth Martinez on the roster.

TODAY’S ROSTER MOVE:

The Astros have reinstated RHP Justin Verlander from the 15-day IL today. He’ll take the roster spot of RHP Seth Martinez, who was optioned to Triple A Sugar Land after last night’s game.

— Houston Astros (@astros) August 21, 2024

Despite only starting 10 games this season, Verlander has still been good when available.

He's posted a 3.95 ERA across 57 innings pitched, holding batters to a .242 average against him. And while his underlying WHIP numbers might be up and his strikeout rate down, that could have been caused by the two injury issues he was dealing with.

If healthy, Verlander is going to play a massive role for the Astros down the stretch as they chase another World Series title.

Hopefully this extended absence has allowed his body to recover and will get him back to being one of the top starters in Major League Baseball again.