AL West: Rescue or respite?

Houston Astros

Just now coming off of a balky shoulder that shelved him for the entirety of spring training, Justin Verlander's first minor league rehab start at AAA-Sugar Land yielded both good results (6/1 K/BB over his three innings) and bad (6 earned runs on 7 hits), none of which is atypical for a pitcher attempting to re-establish some command. All reports have Verlander making just one more minor league start before joining the Astros for his MLB debut as early as April 17 vs. ATL.

Verlander's pending return along with Ronel Blanco's stunning small-sample bottom line – no runs allowed over two starts and 15 IP of work, including that no-hitter – is balm for a rotation beset by injuries and early season depth issues. Framber...

Almost!

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