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Houston Astros right-hander Justin Verlander made his spring training debut on Friday. While that normally wouldn't be notable -- he's made a lot of spring training starts in his career -- Friday's outing was special since it marked his first appearance on a big-league mound since he underwent Tommy John surgery in September 2020.

Verlander, whose most recent regular-season appearance remains July 2020, threw two 31 pitches across two innings versus the St. Louis Cardinals. He allowed one baserunner, on a walk, and he recorded a pair of strikeouts. His catcher for the day, former first-round pick Korey Lee, told reporters (including Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle) afterward that, "It was normal Justin, everything I've seen before. It was electric and I think he's ready to roll for the season."

According to Statcast data, Verlander averaged 94.8 mph on the 16 fastballs he threw on Friday. He topped out at 95.7 mph. Back in 2019, his most recent healthy season, he averaged 94.6 mph on his heater. In other words, Verlander's velocity appears to be back, at least over a short outing:

Verlander also threw eight sliders, recording a whiff on three swings. Take a look at one of those swing-and-misses here:

Verlander rejoined the Astros on a one-year deal worth $25 million during the offseason. His contract includes a conditional option for the 2023 season: if he throws 130 innings, he'll earn a player option worth another $25 million. 

Verlander will enter this season with a career 3.33 ERA (129 ERA+) and 3.54 strikeout-to-walk ratio in nearly 3,000 innings. He's a two-time Cy Young Award winner, including during that 2019 season, as well as an eight-time All-Star.