ASTROS NEWS
Verlander throws 77 pitches over 4 innings for Astros' Double-A affiliate in 2nd rehab start
Apr 14, 2024, 11:25 am
Justin Verlander is making progress. Composite Getty Image.
Astros ace Justin Verlander pitched four innings Saturday night for Double-A Corpus Christi in what is expected to be his final minor league rehab outing before rejoining Houston's rotation.
The three-time Cy Young Award winner gave up six runs — five earned — and seven hits against the Frisco RoughRiders, a Texas Rangers affiliate. He struck out three, walked one and threw 51 of 77 pitches for strikes.
The 41-year-old Verlander opened the season on the injured list with inflammation in his right shoulder.
Verlander was charged with two wild pitches and two pitch-clock violations. He needed 42 pitches to get through the third as Frisco, aided by two Corpus Christi errors, scored six runs in the inning. But the right-hander retired his final five batters in a 10-3 loss before a crowd of 11,622 at Riders Field.
Verlander allowed six earned runs and struck out six while pitching into the fourth inning of his first rehabilitation start Sunday for Triple-A Sugar Land. He threw 65 pitches in that game.
“Looking for him to feel well the next day and hopefully get him back out pitching for us here pretty soon,” Houston manager Joe Espada said Friday.
Espada has said the Astros don't expect Verlander will need more than two minor league starts before making his season debut for Houston.
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The Houston Rockets are acquiring 15-time All-Star and four-time Olympic gold medalist Kevin Durant from the Phoenix Suns in a blockbuster deal struck Sunday, a person with knowledge of the agreement told The Associated Press.
The Rockets are giving up Dillon Brooks, Jalen Green and six future picks — including the No. 10 selection in Wednesday’s opening round of this year’s draft — according to the person who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the deal was still pending NBA approval.
It ends weeks of speculation about where Durant would end up. Many teams were involved at various times, including Miami and Minnesota, but in the end Phoenix took the Rockets’ offer.
ESPN first reported the trade.
Fans learned of the news while Durant was on stage in New York at Fanatics Fest NYC, and when they began reacting, Durant started smiling broadly.
“We're gonna see, man,” Durant said from the stage. “We're gonna see.”
Boardroom, the ever-growing media company that Durant and his business partner, Rich Kleiman, co-founded in 2019 teams up with Fanatics on a number of projects. The panel that Durant was set to appear on there Sunday was called “Global Game Changers.”
He certainly figures to change the game for Houston.
Houston finished No. 2 in the Western Conference in the regular season, albeit 16 games behind No. 1 Oklahoma City. It now adds a two-time champion to its young core as it looks to make another jump next season.
Durant averaged 26.6 points this season, his 17th in the NBA — not counting one year missed because of injury. For his career, the 6-foot-11 forward is averaging 27.2 points and seven rebounds per game.
The move brings Durant back to the state of Texas, where he played his one year of college basketball for the Longhorns and was the college player of the year before going as the No. 2 pick in the 2007 draft by Seattle.
Houston will become his fifth franchise, joining the SuperSonics (who then became the Oklahoma City Thunder), Golden State, Brooklyn and Phoenix. Durant won his two titles with the Warriors in 2017 and 2018, and last summer in Paris he became the highest-scoring player in U.S. Olympic basketball history and the first men's player to be part of four gold-medal teams.