Astros manager on team's 4-10 record to start season: 'Things will turn around'

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Help is on the way for the beleaguered Astros pitching staff, and it can't come soon enough.

Justin Verlander is set to make a second rehab start on Saturday for Double-A Corpus Christi. If all goes well for about 75 pitches, Verlander should be ready to rejoin the Astros staff late next week.

Manager Joe Espada also said Framber Valdez is "doing well" and should start playing catch in the next day or two. Before the first game of a series against the Rangers, ABC13 saw Valdez with a smile on his face in the outfield at Minute Maid Park as he picked up a baseball and tossed it easily to a teammate. That's a positive sign for the Astros after their front-line starting pitcher was placed on the injured list with soreness in his elbow.

SEE MORE: Framber Valdez added to Astros' growing injured list of starting arms

Facing the team's worst start since 2013, first-year manager Joe Espada is keeping a positive and upbeat outlook for a roster that remains stacked with veteran talent.

"Our job is to remind them sometimes less is more," Espada said. "Things will turn around. We've just got to stay positive and continue to fight through this."

Espada has talked with some of his struggling players individually after a 4-10 start that included back-to-back losses in Kansas City by a combined score of 24-5. His message hasn't changed.

"You can't ignore things when you know it can become a trend. Adjustments are made every single day," he said before adding, "We have a really good team. We have a ton of really good players."

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