DETROIT — While Houston works on its immediate future Randy Jones Jersey , the Detroit Tigers are working on the long view. play as September winds down. The Tigers hope the remainder of this year plus 2019 help Detroit return to contender status after launching its rebuild in July and August 2017.Justin Verlander (15-9), traded from Detroit to Houston last Aug. 31 as part of the retooling, won his 20th regular-season game for the Astros since the deal on Monday night. Houston defeated Detroit 3-2, with Verlander fanning 10 in seven innings of six-hit pitching.Article continues below ...Christin Stewart, potentially a major part of the Tigers’ future, made his first major league start, in left field, and collected his first major league hit, a single to right in the sixth inning.Right-hander Jordan Zimmermann (7-6, 4.03 ERA) starts for Detroit against Houston on Tuesday night. Zimmermann owns a 2-3 record with a 3.09 ERA in seven starts against the Astros in his career http://www.padresfanproshop.com/authentic-brad-hand-jersey , but this is his first start against them this year.Rookie left-hander Framber Valdez (3-1, 1.37 ERA) will make his first career start against Detroit. Valdez will make his fifth appearance and fourth start of his career for Houston.Valdez has gone at least four innings and allowed just one run or less in each of his first four games. His team has won eight of its last nine and is 15-4 in its last 19 games.Houston has the future in mind with one of those pieces being rookie right-hander Josh James, who has made one start and one solid relief appearance.Astros manager A.J. Hinch said Monday that James will work out of the bullpen against Detroit, but he is “not giving up hope” that the rookie can make another start in the team’s final games. James has a triple-digit fastall with a changeup and slider. He has made one start and one relief appearance.“I think the intriguing part for him is it’s really hard to hit that kind of velocity and that kind of plus secondary stuff out of the pen,” Hinch said. “If you get one look at him, it’s very dynamic. He could still start and have a very quality start if we choose to do that. But the intriguing part is how velocity plays in September and potentially October.”He was solid in relief Saturday at Boston and Hinch might see how that works out the remainder of the year.“He looked like a reliever and a guy who could be relied on to face a really good lineup in really big innings,” Hinch said. “That kind of strike-throwing, that kind of demeanor and poise, he looks like a weapon.”Detroit announced the callup of two pitchers — right-hander Spencer Turnbull and southpaw Matt Hall — and will activate both and announce before Tuesday’s game how the two will be used the remainder of the month.A 40-man roster move must be made for Hall and it’s possible shortstop Jose Iglesias will be shifted from the 10-day disabled list to the 60-day DL if the results of an examination Tuesday in Philadelphia determine he cannot effectively return this season.Iglesias, a free agent at the end of the season Wil Myers Jersey , has a lower abdominal issue that put him out of action Aug. 30. His discomfort level is such that he hasn’t been able to do anything baseball related yet.“He’s got stuff,” Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said of Turnbull, who has four solid pitches and likely will become part of a six-man rotation later in the week.“He could go both ways (starting or relieving),” Gardenhire said of Hall, who has a dynamic curveball with an 88-91 fastball he has to spot to be effective, which he has done this year. WASHINGTON (AP) — Gio Gonzalez ended a personal drought that spanned more than two months — and helped give the Washington Nationals a four-game split with another National League East contender.Gonzalez pitched seven strong innings for his first victory since May 28, leading the Nationals to a 6-3 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Thursday.“I think I was just happy that I got to high-five my teammates for the first time in a while,” Gonzalez said. “For me it was not the pressure, it was just the going out there and doing what I can do to go out there and try and pitch the best I can. Today it finally showed. It finally stepped to the right direction that I wanted.”The Nationals moved within 5 1/2 games of idle NL East leader Philadelphia. The Braves fell a game behind the Phillies.Gonzalez (7-8) snapped a seven-game losing streak and had gone 11 consecutive starts without a victory. He allowed six hits and one walk while striking out three. Nick Markakis‘ solo homer to lead off the second was the lone run he allowed.Atlanta starter Anibal Sanchez pitched two scoreless innings but left after getting hit in the left calf by a grounder from Michael Taylor. Manager Brian Snitker said he was hopeful Sanchez would make his next start.“It looked like Anibal was going to have one of his games starting out,” Snitker said. “He was sharp as can be. We just had a hard time getting ahold of Gio. That was the biggest thing. We couldn’t do anything with him.”Sanchez was replaced by Wes Parsons (0-1) Rickey Henderson Jersey , who yielded a bases-loaded walk to Juan Soto and a sacrifice fly by Anthony Rendon as Washington went ahead in the third.Taylor homered to left in the fourth to bump Washington’s lead to 3-1, and Daniel Murphy added an RBI double in the sixth.But Parsons worked five innings in his major league debut, vital for a team that had two starters last only two innings during the series in Washington and heads home to face Milwaukee after a 5-3 road trip.“A winning road trip, you take that every single time,” said Atlanta first baseman Freddie Freeman, who had three hits. “Sometimes, you have to lose a battle to win the war. I thought what Wes Parsons did was absolutely huge for this ballclub. That’s going to win us games later on with a fresh bullpen.”Ronald Acuna Jr.’s one-out homer in the eighth pulled Atlanta within two runs, but the Nationals got RBIs from Ryan Zimmerman and Mark Reynolds in the bottom of the inning to make it 6-2.Washington went 7-3 on its homestand and begins a seven-game trip to face the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis.“It was big, a big win for us,” manager Dave Martinez said. “Happy flight.”HARPER SCRATCHEDWashington outfielder Bryce Harper was scratched from the lineup with right knee soreness. Atlanta reliever Dan Winkler hit Harper just below the right knee in the seventh inning on Wednesday night. Martinez said X-rays on Harper were negative.DOUBLE DEBUTParsons and Adam McCreery both made their major league debuts for Atlanta http://www.padresfanproshop.com/authentic-brad-hand-jersey , combining to pitch the last six innings. It was the first time the Braves had two pitchers debut in the same game since June 30, 2015, when Jake Brigham and Ryan Kelly did so against Washington.TRAINER’S ROOMBraves: 3B Johan Camargo was out of the starting lineup for the first time since July 14. He struck out as a pinch hitter to end the game. Charlie Culberson filled in at third for Camargo.Nationals: Martinez said RHP Stephen Strasburg (cervical nerve impingement) will throw at least one more bullpen session before the team decides whether he is ready for a minor league rehabilitation start. Strasburg has not pitched for Washington since July 20.UP NEXTBraves: RHP Kevin Gausman (0-1, 5.40 ERA) makes his second start since his acquisition from Baltimore as Atlanta returns home to open a three-game series with Milwaukee.Nationals: Washington begins a three-game series in Chicago against the Cubs with RHP Jeremy Hellickson (5-2, 3.56) getting the nod.