were home runs and he left the game with the Astros trailing 3–1. The Astros eventually won the game 7–6 in 11 innings. With a chance to clinch the series in Game 6, Verlander gave up three hits and two runs while striking out nine batters in six innings, but was tagged with the loss in a 3–1 final. It was the first time in his career that Verlander failed to win a series-clinching game in the postseason, having gone 3–0 in his three previous chances. It was also his first loss as a member of the Astros. The Astros defeated the Dodgers the next night in Game 7, giving Verlander his first World Series championship. For the 2017 postseason, Verlander made six appearances and five starts, being credited with a 4–1 record, and gaining a 2.21 ERA, .177 batting average against, eight walks, and 38 strikeouts in innings. Along with Jose Altuve, Verlander was also named winner of the Babe Ruth Award as co-MVPs of the 2017 postseason. 2018: 200 career wins, 2,500 strikeouts, Cy Young runner-up On March 5, 2018, Verlander was named the opening day starter for the Astros. This was his 10th career opening day start and first with Houston. He started and won on March 29 versus Cole Hamels of the Texas Rangers, pitching six shutout innings and striking out five. Unlike in previous seasons, Verlander started masterfully in 2018, leading an Astros rotation that began the season as the most dominant in the major leagues. In April, Verlander went 4–0 with a 1.36 ERA and 48 strikeouts over 40 innings. He was named the AL Player of the Week on April 17; in 15 innings over two starts that week, he struck out 20 and allowed a .100 opponents' batting average. On May 1, Verlander struck out 14 Yankees, tying his career high, over eight shutout innings in Houston. On May 16, Verlander threw a complete game shutout against the Los Angeles Angels for his eighth career shutout and 24th complete game. He struck out Shohei Ohtani in the top of the ninth inning for his 2,500th career strikeout, becoming the 33rd pitcher in Major League history to reach the milestone. He was second among active leaders in strikeouts behind CC Sabathia. 12 games into the 2018 season, Verlander led the AL in 17 different categories, most notably: ERA (1.11), Wins (7), Innings Pitched