Carlos Correa’s return to Houston didn’t go as planned as the Minnesota Twins were spared from Justin Verlander’s no-hitter bid in a 4-2 loss to the Houston Astros on Tuesday night.
Correa’s return was the big storyline of the night as he played his first game in Houston since signing with the Twins last offseason. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 MLB Draft was greeted with a standing ovation in his at-bat, but Correa and his teammates got a rude welcome from Verlander.
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After taking a no-hit bid into the eighth inning during a start against the Twins on May 10, Verlander provided an encore by striking out 10 batters over six hitless innings on Tuesday night. Although the veteran was cruising, his pitch count soared into the 90s and forced Dusty Baker to pull from the game.
It was the second time this season that the Twins were spared from a perfect game as Clayton Kershaw struck out 13 batters before being pulled after seven perfect innings on Apr. 13.
It was one of many bad developments for the Twins on the night as Rocco Baldelli was ejected in the fifth inning after being charged with a second mound visit to stop a potential benches-clearing situation.
Correa broke up the team perfect game bid in the seventh and the Twins loaded the bases in the top of the ninth but Jake Cave struck out for the fourth time on the night to hand Minnesota it’s first four-game losing streak of the season.
The Twins also fell 2.5 games behind the Cleveland Guardians for first place in the American League Central — their largest deficit since Apr. 19.
The Twins will try to gain ground on Wednesday night when Dylan Bundy takes on Framber Valdez.
