JV Week: Justin Verlander earns 10th career AL Player of the Week award after 2 critical starts

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- "A lot of people were wondering what it would be like if the 'Stros didn't win the division," Alex Bregman, with goggles around his head and a champagne bottle in his hand, said after his Houston Astros clinched an improbable AL West title. "I guess we'll never know."

Yes, in an alternate universe, the defending World Series champions are probably getting settled on Monday in whichever city they were being hosted for an American League wild-card series that would be played out over the next two to three days. After all, the 'Stros overcame some long odds and even harsher criticism to get back the division title they've claimed now for six of the last seven seasons.

But instead - and to the dismay of anyone outside of H-Town - the Astros made good on a sweep of the Arizona Diamondbacks while getting help from an AL West rival, not to mention pulling out a season-series win over the Texas Rangers, to earn a the division championship, the No. 2 seed in the AL postseason, and a much-needed five-day break before opening the AL Division Series this Saturday at Minute Maid Park.

As it stands, first-pitch times for the first two games at home and the Astros' opponents have yet to be determined.

But Houston may get the preferential portion of the AL bracket. Their potential opponents are the Minnesota Twins, who, despite winning the AL Central Division, actually holds the worst record of the six AL playoff teams, or the Toronto Blue Jays, who, like the Astros, were in jeopardy of making the postseason, thanks to a 4-6 record in the last 10 games of the season.

For added measure, each team has a popular former Astro on the roster - Carlos Correa for the Twins and George Springer for the Blue Jays.

And to drive home the mind-blowing hill they had to climb in a short amount of time, the Astros held a 5.8% chance of winning the division on Sept. 27, four days before skyrocketing to 100% on Sunday, according to FanGraphs.

Insanity, right, Astros fans?

2 JV days turn into a JV award-winning week

It can be argued that if the Astros didn't get vintage Justin Verlander performances during his two starts in the past week, his team wouldn't be in the position to make the playoffs.

But here we are - ALDS-bound and carrying hardware, including a brand-new American League Player of the Week award for the former three-time Cy Young Award winner.

The Astros announce that Verlander earned his 10th career weekly award after earning winning decisions against Seattle and Arizona, who were able to only plate one run combined in the two games.

The Seattle start on Sept. 25, in particular, was a gem. He pitched across eight innings, allowing just three hits and striking out eight batters.

And now, JV is heading back to the postseason with the Astros just two months after return to Houston through a trade.

Are Astros postseason tickets on sale?

The Houston Astros have had tickets on sale since the middle of last week, but the confidence of a playoff berth, even after a demoralizing loss against Seattle on Sept. 26, could have scared fans away.

But here we are.

A check of the team's Astros.com/postseason site showed no tickets available for the first two games on Saturday and Sunday. A third home game would be in play if a deciding game of the series is needed, but those tickets are also not available.

A check of SeatGeek, which is the official ticket reseller of the Astros, shows standing-room-only tickets for $39 as the cheapest available for Game 1.

2023 ALDS schedule, best of five

• Game 1: TBD at Houston, Saturday
• Game 2: TBD at Houston, Sunday, Oct. 8
• Game 3: Houston at TBD, Tuesday, Oct. 10
• Game 4: Houston at TBD, Wednesday, Oct. 11*
• Game 5: TBD at Houston, Friday, Oct. 13*

Game times TBD.

* - if necessary