Justin Verlander turns back the clock as Astros chases Yankees

Houston Astros ace Justin Verlander has been unstoppable in that final set of games, and that could spell trouble for the New York Yankees.

One of the hottest names in the free agent market this offseason was veteran and multiple Cy Young winner Justin Verlander, who was recovering from Tommy John surgery. His contract with Houston Astros expired and he tested the open market. He himself received an offer from the New York Yankees. Ultimately, he chose to remain in Houston on a one-year, $25 million contract with a player option until 2023. The move has worked brilliantly for the Astros so far as it’s on track to win another Cy Young award.

On Thursday night, Verlander put up six scoreless innings, beating five batsmen and conceding just two goals in Houston’s 6-0 win over the Cleveland Guardians. That was enough to give Verlander his 15th win of the season and drop his ERA to 1.73.

Justin Verlander dominates in the final starting phase for Astros

But that game doesn’t say anything about how impressive Verlander has been in the last seven games he’s conquered the mound. He has a 0.76 ERA and allowed just one run or less in all seven starts. Take a look at his full stats below, courtesy of FOX Sports’ Ben Verlander.

Remember the player option we already mentioned for next season. Well, as a result of his last game, he’s hit the required 130.0 innings to trigger the option.

Verlander now leads the league with 15 wins, a .833 win ratio, a 1.73 ERA, a 221 ERA+ and a rating of 1.6 walks per nine innings from 20 starts.

If Verlander continues like this for the remainder of the regular season, not only will he help his case to win a third Cy Young Award, but he could very well edge the Astros as World Series favorites. That could further cement their status as a dangerous threat to the Yankees.