Houston Astros Set Next Steps For Injured Ace’s Rehab

The Houston Astros have set the next two steps for Justin Verlander as he continues his recovery from a shoulder ailment that came up in spring training.

Oct 10, 2023; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Houston Astros pitcher Justin Verlander (35) before the / Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

The Houston Astros have set Justin Verlander’s timetable for the coming days as he continues his recovery from a shoulder injury that put him on the injured list to start the season.

Per The Athletic, Verlander will take a turn in the bullpen on Wednesday, which will be three days after his first rehab start with Triple-A Sugar Land on Sunday.

From there, he is expected to make another rehab start this weekend for an Astros affiliate. The report did not indicate which affiliate.

Sugar Land is in Albuquerque this week while Double-A Corpus Christi is in Frisco to take on the RoughRiders. Having Verlander take his next start with Frisco would keep him closer to Houston if the Astros were ready to activate him for his next turn. They are also at home starting on Friday when they host the Texas Rangers, followed by a home series with the Atlanta Braves.

On Sunday against Las Vegas, Verlander pitched three-plus innings, giving up seven hits, seven runs (six earned) and one walk. He also struck out six. He threw 65 pitches, 46 of which were strikes.

The expectation against Las Vegas was that Verlander would throw 70-75 pitches. It’s not clear how many pitches the Astros hope Verlander will pitch in his next rehab start.

After the second rehab start, Houston will make a decision on next steps.

The Astros also have Jose Urquidy, Luis Garcia and Lance McCullers Jr. on the injured list. Left-hander Framber Valdez was scratched from his start on Monday with elbow soreness and is them most recent pitcher to hit the injured list .

Houston could use Verlander right about now.  

Last season, he went 13-8 overall, going 7-3 with a 3.31 ERA after being sent back to the Astros. He posted these numbers in 27 starts as the beginning of his season was also delayed due to injury.

Houston re-acquired him from the New York Mets at last year's trade deadline for two outfield prospects — Drew Gilbert and Ryan Clifford.