We did not see this one coming either!
Holy freaking cow, folks. JV is coming home. Eight and a half years since the Detroit Tigers traded franchise legend Justin Verlander to the Houston Astros on August 31, 2017, the three-time Cy Young award winner returns to the Tigers on a one-year deal.
We absolutely did not see this coming. First reaction is that Reese Olson or another starter must be bound to miss part of the season. It really did not seem like they had a need for a veteran starter otherwise. Instead, they have inked Verlander to a $13 million deal for 2026 with $11 million of it deferred in payments to begin in 2030, according to Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic Detroit.
Jeff Passan of ESPN also notes in his post on the Verlander signing that the long-time Tigers ace will wear their hat when he’s ultimately inducted into the Hall of Fame. Suddenly there appears to be a concern with franchise legacy from ownership, and we’re here for it. The deal offers the Tigers a lot of flexibility since they won’t be paying much of it for several years to come. It really feels like the club needed starting depth, and decided to lock up Verlander as an all-time Tiger for one more go-around, without putting themselves in too much of a jam if things don’t go well.
Verlander was famously drafted second overall in the 2004 amateur draft after the Texas Rangers drafted Matt Bush. He would go on to win the 2006 Rookie of the Year award, before sweeping the Cy and the American League MVP award in 2011. Since leaving for Houston, Verlander won a World Series in 2017, underwent Tommy John surgery in 2020, and then returned from surgery at age 39 to win his third AL Cy Young in 2022, along with his second World Series ring with the Astros.
He’s lived a whole career for most people since leaving Detroit. Now, 10 days shy of his 43rd birthday, he’ll return to the place it all began.
Category: General Sports
