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The Houston Astros pulled ace pitcher Justin Verlander from Sunday’s start against the Baltimore Orioles after just 60 pitches for an undisclosed reason. Seth Martinez is taking over Verlander in a scoreless game.
Justin Verlander, the leading candidate for the AL Cy Young, is out of today's game after only three innings. Seth Martinez is taking over for him in the fourth against Baltimore.
— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) August 28, 2022
There is no immediate word about why Verlander has been pulled after 60 pitches.
Verlander has been a monster for the Astros and was listed as the favorite to win the AL Cy Young Award on DraftKings Sportsbook prior to exiting the game. He entered the start 16-3 with a 1.87 ERA. The Astros are the favorites to win the AL on DraftKings Sportsbook at +175 and are listed at +425 to win the World Series, which is second behind the Dodgers. If Verlander is out for an extended period of time, those odds will surely decline.
The Astros have a strong pitching staff behind Verlander, especially with the return of Lance McCullers Jr. We could see some relievers get extended innings in the event Verlander has to sit out games if Houston doesn’t bring up a starting pitcher.