Justin Verlander’s injury is a mild lat strain, with the Houston Astros saying that their ace pitcher is being shut down for the time being.
The 37 year old Verlander was pulled early from his second spring training start yesterday after two innings, complaining of triceps soreness. Verlander missed two months with a triceps strain while he was with the Detroit Tigers in 2015, and this soreness prompted the club to send him for an MRI.
Verlander being shut down has the Astros saying he is uncertain for Opening Day, though with Opening Day for Houston being just seventeen days away, it seems unlikely that Verlander, once he gets the okay to start throwing again, to be ready to be in the rotation by then.