As he was left off the team’s roster , starting pitcher Justin Verlander didn’t get a chance to contribute during the Houston Astros’ AL wild-card series against his former team, the Detroit Tigers.
Despite having home-field advantage, the Astros dropped both games at Minute Maid Park and were eliminated from the playoffs on Wednesday. The defeat ended a streak of making it to at least the ALCS in seven straight years.
The 41-year-old Verlander spoke after Wednesday’s 5-2 loss and said he plans to continue his legendary career on the mound in 2025.
The three-time AL Cy Young Award winner had an uneven 2024 season that saw him finish 5-6 with a career-worst 5.48 ERA across 90 1/3 innings covering 17 starts. Verlander battled multiple shoulder issues throughout the year to pitch the fewest innings of his career outside of his two-start MLB debut in 2005 and the 2020 and 2021 campaigns after he underwent Tommy John surgery following one outing in the pandemic-altered season.