One day after seeing Rafael Devers don their home team’s uniform for the first time, San Francisco Giants fans will get an opportunity to get reacquainted with another star, Justin Verlander, when he returns from the injured list to face the Cleveland Guardians on Wednesday night.
Devers had a double, single and RBI in his Giants debut Tuesday, but the Cleveland bullpen put out several late fires to preserve a 3-2 win in the opener of a three-game interleague series.
Verlander (0-3, 4.33 ERA) didn’t need to watch the game to add to his exhaustive scouting report on the Guardians. The 42-year-old has pitched a whopping 57 games against Cleveland — the most of any team in his career — while compiling a 24-24 record and 4.42 ERA.
The right-hander has a similar ERA in 10 starts for the Giants, but has no wins to show for it. In fact, two of his three losses came in his past six outings, a stretch in which he has not given up more than three runs in a game.
In those three losses, the Giants scored five total runs.
Verlander last pitched exactly a month ago at home against the Athletics in a 3-2 victory. He didn’t stick around long enough to get the win, throwing four innings while dealing with right pectoral soreness that landed him on the injured list.
Coincidentally, the three-time Cy Young Award winner has deemed himself ready to return after his replacement, Kyle Harrison, was dealt to the Boston Red Sox in the Devers deal.
“It feels exciting. I’ve been pretty anxious wanting to pitch,” Verlander said. “I feel like things were starting to trend in the right direction (before the injury), and hopefully I can pick up where I left off.”
The Giants would love to see Devers pick up where he left off Tuesday night. The slugger’s two hits were both productive — an RBI double in the third inning and a one-out single in the ninth that moved the potential tying run into scoring position.
Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase wound up stranding the bases loaded, but Verlander looks forward to Devers providing some of the offensive support that’s been lacking in most of his starts in his first season with the Giants.
“Anytime you can bring in a great player, I think the longer you can have him be an impact over the course of the season, the better,” Verlander said. “I’m a big fan of getting him in early.”
Verlander has a lifetime of experience pitching against Guardians corner infielders Carlos Santana and Jose Ramirez. Santana has taken his rival deep nine time in 97 career head-to-heads, while Ramirez has hit .325 with four homers in 40 official at-bats.
Seeking a second straight win after opening a nine-game trip with three consecutive losses in Seattle, Cleveland has scheduled left-hander Logan Allen (4-4, 4.28) to deal with Devers while opposing Verlander.
In a lefty vs. lefty matchup, Allen has won most of his early battles with Devers, allowing just one hit — a single — in nine at-bats with two strikeouts.
The 26-year-old has faced the Giants twice in his three-year career, going 0-0 with a 2.89 ERA.
– Field Level Media
