In his 17th start of the season, Justin Verlander earned a win for the first time with the San Francisco Giants. Verlander allowed just one hit and didn't surrender a single run in five innings of work against the Atlanta Braves in San Francisco's 9-3 victory. While it was encouraging to see Verlander put a good enough start together for the Giants, San Francisco can't trick themselves into thinking a trade for an impactful starter isn't needed.
The Giants hoped Verlander would be a quality third or fourth starter for them, but he hasn't been. The right-hander entered the day with a 4.99 ERA in 16 starts and 79.1 innings of work, and, again, was winless. Granted, he's pitched well enough to win some other times he's taken the ball, but for the most part, things haven't gone well for the future Hall of Famer in San Francisco.
It was nice to see Verlander get career win No. 263, but again, this one decent-enough start should not fool the Giants into thinking Verlander should be a major part of this team and that the Giants don't need to add a starter before the month is out.
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Justin Verlander cannot be trusted at this point
Even in this start, while he kept the Braves off the board, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. First, the Braves don't score much to begin with; Atlanta is just 22nd in the Majors in runs scored. Verlander holding a subpar offense off the board shouldn't mean that much.
Second, while Verlander didn't allow a run and only gave up one hit, he still walked five batters in those five innings and had to throw 98 pitches. He was having trouble throwing strikes and was fortunate that the Braves didn't make him pay. Better teams might've done that.
Was he better on Wednesday than he had been? Sure. Was he good enough to give the Giants any reason to believe he's anything but a No. 5 starter, and a mediocre one at this point? Not really. The MLB world is rooting for Verlander, but he just isn't reliable right now.
Giants must add starting pitching
Much of the focus has been on the offense, which has still struggled even after adding Rafael Devers, but the Giants' rotation has issues too. The dynamic duo of Logan Webb and Robbie Ray is outstanding, and Landen Roupp has had a phenomenal year, but there is no No. 5 starter. Hayden Birdsong looked good at times, but he struggled lately to the point where he was demoted to Triple-A. Both Jordan Hicks and Kyle Harrison were traded to the Boston Red Sox to get Devers. The only other pitcher who has started a game this season is Sean Hjelle, a reliever who has an ERA over 7.00.
Right now, Verlander is the team's No. 4 starter, and he honestly shouldn't be when considering how he's pitched. The Giants not only need another starter, but they should look to acquire one who they feel comfortable enough handing the ball to in a postseason game. Again, Verlander, even after Wednesday's start, should not be that guy.
The Giants need a bat, but the rotation might be even more of a pressing need. In a seller's market that isn't expected to have many, if any, high-end starters available, it'll be interesting to see what Buster Posey can pull off.