MLB’s general popularity may be dwindling year by year, but loyal fans are staying true. Among the true faithful of the Houston Astros are some celebrities that make it a tradition to visit Minute Maid Park regularly. One of them is 7x Olympic gymnast Simone Biles, a Houston native.

Biles has made numerous appearances at the ballpark as a special guest. She even threw the iconic flip pitch at game 2 of the World Series back in 2019 and then appeared for the same last year. The Philadelphia Phillies unfortunately took game 1 of 2022 despite fans hailing the Olympian as a lucky charm. But at least this year, recently returned, Justin Verlander is back in top form for his first home start.

One Year After Simone Biles Visit, Justin Verlander Makes It Comeback to Houston

Despite riding on the high of a World Series victory, Verlander decided to opt for free agency in 2022. Expectations were high when he signed with the New York Mets for two years, but an underwhelming first half followed. It was as if New York had fallen under a curse.

But after being traded back to the reigning World Series champs in Houston, Verlander has returned to the form that helped him win the Cy Young Award for the third time. Back in stellar condition, the 40-year-old just pitched a beautiful game against the visiting Los Angeles Angels.

The Halos are coming off a series victory against the San Francisco Giants, but they stood no chance against the Astros, who won 11-3. Shohei Ohtani may give it his best this season, a much-touted MVP contender, but his team never seems to keep up with him.

In contrast, Verlander’s first game back at Minute Maid Park was a success with a strong team. It saw seven strikeouts with no walks and three runs across six innings. Although he gave up a home run to CJ Cron in the second, the star pitcher had an excellent overall outing.

Can Verlander Help the Astros to Another World Series Appearance?

Pitchers are crucial in the clutch, so most teams try to invest in them. Verlander saw immense success with the Astros despite spending 13 seasons with the Detroit Tigers, and Houston loved him right back. His rep brought more lucrative offers from rival teams, especially after 2x World Series success.

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New York now feels like a blip in the fabric of the Astros’ story and fans are happy to see him back in orange rather than blue. And a huge part of that reason is more championship success because the Astros are already a top-notch team. With a good pitching staff, they will be unstoppable.

“If Verlander remains Verlander, this is a terrifying postseason team. Again,” wrote MLB.com’s Will Leitch. Indeed, the 40-year-old has turned into a phenomenon and will be vital in improving Houston’s repeat attempts at a World Series.

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