Justin Verlander Earns Career Win No. 200 in Astros' Victory vs. Athletics

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Justin Verlander hit a career milestone Sunday to help the Houston Astros reclaim sole possession of first place in the American League West.  

The 2011 AL MVP notched his 200th career victory in Houston's 9-4 victory over its division rivals:

Verlander settled in after a rough start in which he gave up two solo homers in the bottom of the first inning. The seven-time All-Star went just 5.1 innings but only allowed four runs with six strikeouts, one walk and scattered seven hits. 

Among active players, Verlander joins Bartolo Colon of the Texas Rangers (247) and CC Sabathia of the New York Yankees (244) as the only pitchers with at least 200 wins. 

The win was also huge for the defending World Series champions, who find themselves locked in a battle atop the AL West standings. The A's won the first two games of the series to tie for the division lead. 

Verlander is in the midst of a Cy Young-caliber season. Heading into Sunday, he ranked fourth among AL pitchers in FanGraphs' wins above replacement (4.7) and has 223 strikeouts with a 2.65 ERA in 169.2 innings over 27 starts. 

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