HOUSTON — Justin Verlander will start Game 1 of the AL Division Series against the Minnesota Twins on Saturday afternoon, Astros Manager Dusty Baker announced Thursday.
It will be Verlander's 35th career postseason start. On the way to the World Series Championship in 2022, Verlander became the all-time leader in MLB postseason strikeouts. The future Hall-of-Famer finished with 25 strikeouts, including 11 against the Yankees in the ALCS, for a total of 230.
With 16 career playoff wins, including nine with the Astros, Verlander is second overall behind Andy Pettitte with 19.
In the regular season, the three-time Cy Young Award winner was 13-8 with a 3.22 ERA in 27 total starts. After being traded back to the Astros from the Mets, the 40-year-old finished 7-3 with a 3.31 ERA in 11 starts.
Baker said lefty Framber Valdez will get the nod in Game 2 Sunday night. He was 12-11 with a 3.45 ERA in 31 starts this season, including a no-hitter against the Guardians in August.
Bailey Ober will start in Game 1 for the Minnesota Twins. Ober went 8-6 with a 3.43 ERA in 26 starts this season. He was sent to Triple-A for about a month before returning to the Twins on Sept. 15. It will be the first career postseason start for the 6 feet 9 inch right-hander who was not included on the wild-card roster.
ALDS schedule
- Game 1 is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 7 at Minute Maid Park. Start time is 3:45 p.m. CT
- Game 2 is scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 8 at Minute Maid Park. Start time is 7:03 p.m. CT
- Game 3 is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 10 at Target Field in Minnesota. Start time is 3:07 p.m. CT
If more games are needed:
- Game 4 is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 11 at Target Field in Minnesota. Start time is TBD.
- Game 5 is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 13 at Minute Maid Park. Start time is TBD.
After trailing the Texas Rangers for most of the season, the Astros rallied on the final day of the regular season to win their sixth American League West championship in seven years.
The Twins snapped an 18-game playoff losing streak by sweeping the Blue Jays in the AL Wild Card Series, MLB reported.
Minnesota went 4-2 against Houston in the regular season but they last met four months ago when the Astros were without slugger Yordan Alvarez.
Minnesota shortstop Carlos Correa said he's not worried about facing his former teammates.
“Obviously, they've got a great team and so do we,” Correa told MLB.com's Brian McTaggert. “We're going out there with the mentality that we can compete against anybody. When I look at our roster, everywhere you look, we're ready. Our bullpen, our rotation, our lineup, is deep. I feel good about the team we have, and I feel confident going to Houston.”
The Astros are trying to become the first team to repeat as World Series champions since the Yankees in 1998-2000.
According to MLB.com, these are the likely starting lineups for Game 1.
Houston Astros
1. Jose Altuve, 2B
2. Alex Bregman, 3B
3. Yordan Alvarez, DH
4. Kyle Tucker, RF
5. José Abreu, 1B
6. Chas McCormick, LF
7. Jeremy Peña, SS
8. Mauricio Dubón, CF
9. Martín Maldonado, C
Minnesota Twins
1. Edouard Julien, 2B
2. Jorge Polanco, 3B
3. Royce Lewis, DH
4. Max Kepler, RF
5. Alex Kirilloff, 1B
6. Carlos Correa, SS
7. Matt Wallner, LF
8. Ryan Jeffers, C
9. Michael A. Taylor, CF