The Houston Astros got everything they needed from Justin Verlander on Monday night, as the team was able to secure a critical win over the Mariners.

Starting pitching has been the biggest issue of late for Houston, with Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown both getting lit up by the Royals over the weekend.

Hopefully, Cristian Javier and Framber Valdez can follow the blueprint JV provided and give the team a legit chance to win their next two games in Seattle.

As we look ahead to the next series, JP France seems like the likely starter on Friday, but after that things get murky. If Saturday is a must-win game for Houston, Verlander seems like the most logical choice on 4 days rest. Then they must decide if they want to use Valdez on short rest, or go all hands on deck with a bullpen game.

At this point, it's hard to imagine Hunter Brown making another start this season. Brown has surrendered 6 earned runs or more in 3 of his last 4 starts. His ERA for the season is now over 5.

But it's not just Brown and, to a much lesser extent, JP France causing concern for the Astros rotation. There's no way around it, all these guys have regressed.

Verlander (2022 ERA 1.75, 2023 ERA 3.32)

Javier (2022 ERA 2.54, 2023 ERA 4.64)

And Framber's ERA has gone up about 1/2 a run (2.82-3.39).

But it's not all on the pitching. The defense has taken a step back this year, and what about the coaching? Shouldn't the coaches be accountable for some of this?

If not, then why do they them?

Be sure to watch the video above for the full discussion.

Don't miss Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) every Monday on SportsMap Houston's YouTube channel.