Astros' Justin Verlander aims to end struggles in clash with Guardians

With the Guardians and Houston Astros currently holding the second and third seeds in the American League playoffs, respectively, their three-game weekend set in Cleveland might serve as a dress rehearsal for postseason roster construction.

Game 2 in the series will be Saturday evening.

Houston claimed a 5-2 victory in the opener on Friday, and Astros manager Joe Espada piggybacked starters Ronel Blanco and Spencer Arrighetti. That tandem combined to allow just one hit over 7 1/3 scoreless innings, providing a glimpse of their potential usage next week when the Astros (87-73) host a wild-card series.

Espada likely will deploy Framber Valdez, Hunter Brown and Yusei Kikuchi in some sequence should the series extend to three games. That probability puts Blanco and Arrighetti, who combined for 57 starts this season, in position to work out of the bullpen should the need arise.

"That first round, we're still having conversations about the rotation," Espada said. "But those pieces out of the bullpen, anything can happen in those games. And if you could have some length if something happens to one of our starters early in the game and you have those guys available and they can give you three or four good innings, that's what you need."

Right-hander Justin Verlander (4-6, 5.55 ERA) has the starting assignment for the Astros on Saturday.

Verlander has struggled mightily since his return from the injured list, going 1-4 with an 8.89 ERA over six starts while recording only 18 strikeouts over 27 1/3 innings. He missed 54 games with neck discomfort and is fighting for a spot on the postseason roster.

Verlander is 23-24 with a 4.41 ERA over 56 career starts against the Guardians (92-68). He did not factor into the decision of a 3-2 home loss to Cleveland on May 1 after allowing two runs on six hits and three walks with two strikeouts over seven innings.

Right-hander Ben Lively (13-9, 3.80 ERA) is the scheduled starter for the Guardians on Saturday.

Lively won his second consecutive start, on Sept. 20 against the St. Louis Cardinals, after allowing one run on three hits and one walk with two strikeouts over five innings in a 5-1 road victory. Lively has allowed one run over his last three starts and 12 innings, pitching to an 0.75 ERA and .467 OPS.

Lively will make his first career appearance against the Astros.

Guardians rookie right-hander Joey Cantillo got another taste of the stretch run by working into the fourth inning of his eighth career start. Cantillo unlikely will play a role for the Guardians his postseason, but he has shown flashes of talent that should make him a viable member of the Cleveland rotation next season. Facing a veteran Astros lineup advanced his learning curve.

"It's going to be a really good learning experience for him," Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. "He's got three other very good pitches (besides the changeup), and there are going to be nights where teams like that take it away from you. I think it's going to be a really good growing game for Joey."

--Field Level Media