HOUSTON -- The significance of the moment wasn¡¯t lost on Justin Verlander, who patted his chest to acknowledge the Minute Maid Park crowd and pointed toward the sky before disappearing into the home dugout perhaps for the final time.

The standing ovation 39,666 fans gave the 41-year-old three-time Cy Young Award winner on Friday night was in appreciation for his remarkable career and how he helped lift the Astros to new heights and not about his wobbly 4 2/3 innings of work in Houston¡¯s 9-7 win over the Angels.

¡°It meant a lot, it really did,¡± he said. ¡°That was, honestly, pretty special to me. I know how these fans know the game and pay attention. They know I¡¯m out there grinding and trying to give everything I can. I¡¯ve worked as hard as humanly possible trying to bounce back as quickly as I can from the injury and get back out there, and for them to have that ovation after such a difficult day, it touched me.¡±

Verlander, who gave up six runs and eight hits and struck out four Angels batters, admitted candidly postgame that he came back too quickly from the neck injury that sidelined him for two and a half months, but he wanted to help the Astros get to the postseason.

"Obviously, I know the schedule, I know the calendar,¡± he said. ¡°I want to be an asset for this team, and to do that, I need to be able to pitch and find out where I'm at. Obviously, the results have not been good, but there¡¯s nothing you can do besides try and pitch.¡±

Verlander didn¡¯t want to get into the specifics of the injury, but said he plans to make his final start of the regular season next week in Cleveland.

¡°I did have doctors say it would probably take a little longer [to recover],¡± he said. ¡°I want to be here for this team. ¡­ I¡¯ve pitched through a lot of stuff in my career. Obviously, I¡¯m not saying I¡¯m not going to continue to pitch, but it¡¯s been quite difficult. [The neck] hasn¡¯t hurt. Obviously, timing stuff is just not right.¡±

The Astros got home runs from Alex Bregman, Jake Meyers and Kyle Tucker, who went 4-for-5, to hold off the Angels and remain five games ahead of the second-place Mariners with eight games remaining. They can clinch their seventh American League West title in eight seasons as early as Sunday.

Verlander has posted an 8.89 ERA in 27 1/3 innings since coming off the injured list a month ago and has a 5.55 ERA in 84 1/3 innings pitched this season. Meanwhile, Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown have pitched like aces in the second half, and the Astros have won all nine starts Yusei Kikuchi has made in a Houston uniform. Then there¡¯s Ronel Blanco, who entered Friday ranked third in the AL behind Cy Young favorite Tarik Skubal (2.48) and Valdez (2.85) with a 2.88 ERA.

Verlander was asked if he would understand and accept if he wasn¡¯t on Houston¡¯s postseason roster.

¡°Yeah, I mean, like I said, it¡¯s not my decision,¡± he said. ¡°I was away for two months and all these guys were pitching fantastic. You¡¯ve seen a bunch of guys really come into their own. I see the calendar, I know what time of year it is. That's why I had to come back and try to find myself.

¡°There¡¯s only one way to be successful in this game as a pitcher, and that¡¯s to pitch against the best talent in the world. Sitting there trying to give myself time wasn¡¯t possible. I needed to figure out where I was at. It¡¯s been hard; it¡¯s been a tough lesson, but I don¡¯t regret it. I want to show up for these guys, I want to be there.¡±

Verlander retired the first seven hitters he faced before Gustavo Campero tripled and scored in the third inning. The Angels pushed two runs across in the fourth and three more in the fifth, ending Verlander¡¯s night one out shy of his 262nd career win.

¡°The first couple of innings today I felt were where I wanted to be, what I¡¯ve been kind of searching for,¡± he said. ¡°It just wasn¡¯t great after that.¡±