Justin Verlander, a three-time Cy Young winner, two-time World Series champion, and one-time MVP winner, is calling it a career. The 43-year-old pitcher for the Detroit Tigers, who is the oldest active player in the major leagues, announced on Wednesday that he will retire at season’s end.
The timing of his announcement is certainly appropriate as he is one of the legends of the sport, and his reveal came just after being announced as an All-Star Legend Pick. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred named Verlander to the AL roster as a Legend Pick, with Bryce Harper being the Legend Pick for the NL. No, Harper isn’t retiring, but the Midsummer Classic will take place in his home ballpark in Philadelphia.
Verlander posted his retirement message on social media, alluding to his body simply no longer being up to the job.
“I never wanted to retire because of a milestone, a number, or a date on the calendar. I wanted the game to tell me when it was time. Over the last several months, I’ve realized that time has come. While I’m fully committed to giving my team everything I have for the rest of this season, I’ve decided this will be my last. It’s fitting that I get to finish where it all started—with the Detroit Tigers, the organization that drafted me and gave me my first opportunity.”
Verlander rejoined the Tigers on a one-year deal this past offseason, joining the organization that made him the No. 2 overall draft pick in 2004. However, Father Time is undefeated, and Verlander has simply been unable to stay on the field in his final MLB season.
He made just one start, back on March 30, and gave up five earned runs and six hits over 3 2/3 innings, taking the loss in a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. He was then placed on the injured list with hip inflammation and missed 2½ months. He was slated to return to the mound on June 21, but a hamstring strain during a bullpen session sidelined him again and has kept him on the IL.
Verlander is scheduled to throw a bullpen session on Thursday and does intend to return to Big League action at some point this year.
His first stint in Detroit was filled with highlights and huge outings, and it’s where he laid the foundation for what’s sure to be a Hall of Fame career. With the Tigers from 2005-17, Verlander was a six-time All-Star, won a Cy Young award, and claimed the 2011 American League MVP. He became just the 10th pitcher to win the Most Valuable Player award and remains the only AL starting pitcher to win MVP over the last 39 years.
From there, Verlander moved to the Houston Astros, and while most pitchers are out of the sport in their mid-to-late 30s, Verlander hit his peak. He added two Cy Young awards and won a pair of World Series championships. As with Detroit, Verlander had two stints with the Astros, briefly playing for the New York Mets at the start of the 2023 season before being traded back to Houston.
Last year saw Verlander with the San Francisco Giants, where he posted just a 4-11 record. As of announcing his intent to retire, Verlander has a career record of 266-159, with a 3.33 ERA and 3,554 strikeouts. He leads active players in just about every pitching stat imaginable including wins, losses, games started, innings pitched, hits allowed, home runs allowed, and strikeouts.
It’s that last statistic that Verlander is perhaps best known for. One of the most prolific strikeout artists in baseball history, he led the league in strikeouts five times. He ranks eighth all-time in Ks and is just 21 strikeouts away from passing Don Sutton for seventh.
Verlander’s retirement announcement comes just months after another three-time Cy Young-winning pitcher hung up the cleats—the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw. They are two-thirds of a trio of pitchers who will always be grouped together alongside yet another three-time Cy Young winner in Max Scherzer who, at 41, is the second-oldest player in baseball behind Verlander.
Scherzer’s season in Toronto has had a similar script as he made five starts to begin the year, then went on the IL, returned for one start, and is now back on the IL. Given that Scherzer has a 10.23 ERA this season, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him ride off into the sunset alongside Verlander.
