Verlander was done after five innings Tuesday night against Cleveland, allowing eight hits, seven runs (seven earned), three walks and two strikeouts. He took the loss and is now 2-3 on the season.
He was knocked around in the first inning to the tune of 38 pitches, 28 of which were fastballs, and Cleveland went up 3-0 early. Verlander also allowed a home run, his seventh of the season, in just his sixth start -- that's a queasy pace for sure. He allowed just 13 in 20 starts last season and 18 in 32 starts in 2014. Verlander's propensity to serve up taters has us concerned. There's always a point in a pitcher's career where his velocity drops a bit and he's forced to rely on his secondary stuff. But we thought Verlander had already gone through that. This could be the next drop in his game, but we're not prepared to declare that at this point.