Justin Verlander has agreed to a one-year, $13 million deal to return to the Detroit Tigers, the team announced Tuesday.
Of Verlander’s $13 million salary, $11 million will be deferred.
Verlander has not pitched for the Tigers since he was dealt to the Houston Astros at the 2017 trade deadline. During his time with the franchise, he was a six-time All-Star, the 2006 AL Rookie of the Year and the winner of the 2011 AL Cy Young and AL MVP awards.
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He responded to the news of his return with a social media video montage of his time with the Tigers captioned “Back where it all started.”
After his time with the Tigers, Verlander spend parts of five seasons with the Astros, winning two more Cy Youngs and two World Series titles.
He then moved on to the New York Mets to start 2023 before being traded back to the Astros at that season’s trade deadline. He also spent the 2024 season with Houston.
Verlander signed with the Giants in free agency before last season. The veteran right-hander went 4-11 with a 3.85 ERA and 1.362 WHIP in 152 innings with San Francisco.
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Verlander, who has 266 career wins, now joins a Tigers pitching staff that will also feature Framber Valdez, Jack Flaherty, Casey Mize and an apparently very excited Tarik Skubal.
The Tigers will look to benefit from Verlander’s postseason experience after reaching the ALDS each of the past two seasons. He has 226 playoff innings pitched, with a 1.12 WHIP and 244 strikeouts in 38 postseason appearances.
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