Former Tigers watch: Justin Verlander dominates Justin Upton, Angels

With the Detroit Tigers struggling something fierce as we head down the stretch, we Tigers fans need something else to entertain ourselves. The minor league season is over and we don’t want to watch football, so we’re turning to the next best thing: other baseball. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be checking in on our old friends as they make a push towards the 2017 postseason (now with standings!).

Houston Astros 1, Los Angeles Angels 0 (box)

No longer an ace? Yeah, right. Justin Verlander was brilliant in his second start with the Astros, striking out nine in eight shutout innings. He did not allow a hit after the first inning, and set former teammate Justin Upton down three times. The loss put the Angels two games back in the AL Wild Card race.

Verlander: 8.0 IP, H, 0 ER, BB, 9 SO
Upton: 0-3, SO

Colorado Rockies 4, Arizona Diamondbacks 2 (box)

J.D. Martinez hit another home run, but his teammates offered little help as the D’Backs lost their second in a row. Martinez now has 22 homers since being traded to Arizona, and it is my new life goal to see him and Giancarlo Stanton play a full season in that launchpad of a stadium.

Martinez: 2-4, HR, R, RBI, SO

Chicago Cubs 8, New York Mets 3 (box)

Justin Wilson’s struggles in a Cubs uniform continued on Tuesday. He allowed a run in just ¹⁄₃ inning, giving him a 6.39 ERA in 12 ²⁄₃ frames since being traded. Alex Avila did not play. Former Tigers division rival Jose Quintana picked up the win with seven strikeouts in seven strong innings.

Wilson: 0.1 IP, H, ER, 2 BB, SO

AL PLAYOFF PICTURE

Boston Red Sox 11, Oakland Athletics 1 (box)

Mookie Betts is good at the baseballs.

Tampa Bay Rays 2, New York Yankees 1 (box)

Mildly Perturbed Rays Fan was probably less perturbed after this result.

Seattle Mariners 10, Texas Rangers 3 (box)

Winning pitcher: M. Gonzales. Losing pitcher: M. Gonzalez.

Minnesota Twins 16, San Diego Padres 0 (box)

The Twins wiped out their negative run differential in one night. A few more games of this, and they might catch the Indians (at +220).

Kansas City Royals 4, Chicago White Sox 3 (box)

Brandon Moss hit a grand slam in the first inning, marking the first productive thing he has done for the Royals all season long.

Toronto Blue Jays 3, Baltimore Orioles 2 (box)

Zach Britton finally pitched in an important game against the Blue Jays, but it made no difference. In fact, Britton blew a save, and the O’s fell 4 ¹⁄₂ games back in the AL Wild Card race.

LOL IS THIS REALLY BASEBALL (NL PLAYOFF PICTURE)

St. Louis Cardinals 13, Cincinnati Reds 4 (box)

The Zombie Cardinals are totally going to win the World Series.

Milwaukee Brewers 5, Pittsburgh Pirates 2 (box)

The Brewers used 20 players and still played a game in three hours flat. You can’t fast forward through a Tigers game in three hours these days.

Los Angeles Dodgers 5, San Francisco Giants 3 (box)

The Dodgers finally won a game, the bums.

Philadelphia Phillies 9, Miami Marlins 8 (F/15) (box)

This game went 15 innings and I seriously question the sanity of anyone who watched all of it.

Atlanta Braves 8, Washington Nationals 0 (box)

Congrats to the Braves for beating the Nats on Hangover Lineup Day.