Justin Verlander News: Takes loss in return

Verlander (0-4) took the loss against Cleveland on Wednesday, allowing four runs (three earned) on three hits and one walk while striking out six batters over 4.2 innings.

Verlander was activated Wednesday after spending nearly a month on the IL due to a pectoral injury. The veteran's return outing was a bit of a mixed bag; he notched a healthy 12 whiffs and six punchouts over 4.2 frames but was also touched up for seven hits, the most harmful of which was a three-run homer by Daniel Schneemann in the fourth inning. Verlander came close to a full workload with 83 pitches (56 of which were strikes), so the most positive takeaway from this outing is that the pec issue appears to be in the rearview mirror. After 11 starts, Verlander is still searching for his first win as a Giant, and his next opportunity for that is projected to be a favorable home matchup against Miami.