When he was in Little League, Justin had trouble knowing where the ball was going when it left his hand.

"I was throwing off a 45-foot mound, and parents got so mad because I used to hit so many kids," Verlander said. "Kids would start to cry on deck before facing me. In one game, I hit the same kid in his first two at-bats. He quit baseball after that game. Thankfully, in the next couple of years I started throwing strikes."

When Justin was growing up in Manakin Sabot, Virginia, population 4,043, he watched the Orioles. Verlander has since moved to Goochland, Virginia, a much bigger (ahem) city of 16,863. Justin says it is an "everybody-knows-everybody-town. There's a lot of farmland. A restaurant there has the Verlander Burger, but they didn't consult me before they made it. It has raw onions and tomatoes, and I don't like either one."

Now, Verlander can throw a baseball on a line from end zone to end zone on a football field.  (Will Kimmey-Baseball America-4/12/04)

To say that Verlander is a creature of habit doesn't give him enough credit. He's a champion at it. It's the way Verlander's parents got him to focus his talents as an energetic kid growing up in Virginia, and the way he built his game and become most of the most formidable competitors in any sport today.

"He likes order, structure," his mother, Kathy, said during the summer of 2012. "And so that's the way we parented him."

In 2003, Verlander led the Colonial Athletic Association with a 1.90 ERA and had 139 strikeouts—setting a new Old Dominion school record. And he set a school mark with 17 strikeouts against James Madison.

In 2004, he broke his own Old Dominion strikeout record, with 151, and also set a new Colonial Athletic Association record. He was 7-6 for the third straight year to go with a 3.49 ERA. However, he had two more appealing stats. He set a school record with 151 strikeouts in 105 2/3 innings this season after fanning 139 over 116 1/3 innings as a sophomore.

"Here's a side not for you," Justin said. "In college, I walked a lot of guys. I walked the same amount of guys every year in college—43 guys, three years in a row. Consistent!" he says, laughing.

CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE TIGERS

In June 2004, the Tigers took Jason with their #1 pick (#2 overall). But in October 2004, the Tigers broke off all negotiations with Verlander.

"I am very, very disappointed," Tigers scouting director Greg Smith said on October 14. "We are notifying Justin that, per our discussions and where we are, we are withdrawing all our offers. We do not have any plans of signing him. This is no ploy."

Smith said the gap between the sides on Verlander's signing bonus was "substantial," even though the Tigers significantly improved their original offer. Based on the bonuses that the Tigers and other clubs have given high first-round picks in recent years, it's reasonable to believe Detroit offered Verlander close to $3 million, if not more.

Finally, on October 22, 2004, Verlander signed a five-year contract with the Tigers and scout Greg Smith. It was worth around $4.5 million. It included a $3.1 signing bonus. It was only after his father, Richard, became involved. Justin's father, a union representative, said his background in negotiations came in handy, and that helped restart talks between the sides.

"I just felt like that had been missing, and I wanted to reach out to the Tigers myself," Richard Verlander said. "We knew that Justin wanted to be a Tiger, and after the draft, we were prepared to just let the process run its course. Never did we think that things would get to the point where the offer is being withdrawn."

When Justin was in the 10th grade, he made a deal with his friend, Daniel Hicks. "I wanted a chocolate milk that cost 50 cents, and I didn't have the money. So I said, 'How about I give you one percent of my pro signing bonus if you give me 50 cents now?' He found a napkin, wrote it up, and I signed it. I forgot about it, but after I signed, he comes over and whips out this old napkin. I'm like, 'Oh my God!' My bonus was three-point-something million. "Was a chocolate milk worth $3,000? I want to say yes. I was parched," Verlander said. (Ben Reiter-Sports Illustrated-5/28/07)

In 2005, Verlander led the minors in ERA (giving up only one run in 33 innings at Double-A Erie), started the Futures Game in Comerica Park, and made his Major League debut at Jacobs Field on Independence Day.

During the off-season before 2005 spring training, Baseball America rated Verlander as the third best prospect in the Tigers organization. But before 2006 spring camp opened, they ranked him as the #1 prospect in the Detroit farm system.

Justin enjoys playing golf in his spare time.

In 2006, Verlander was the AL Rookie of the Year.

Verlander's June 12, 2007 no-hitter was the first for the Tigers since Jack Morris threw one on the road in 1984. But Justin became the first Detroit Tiger pitcher to throw a no-hitter in Detroit since Virgil Trucks did it on May 15, 1952. Trucks, who turned 90 in April 2007, presented Justin with a award prior to the Tigers' game against the Red Sox on July 8, 2007. Joe Ginsberg, who was the catcher for Trucks' no-hitter, was also there to present Pudge Rodriguez with an award for his part in the historic outing.

Justin's younger brother Ben joined him in the clubhouse on June 17, 2007. The two share a common bond: They both threw a no-hitter in 2007. Ben, who was 15 years old at the time, threw his for the Goochland High School (Va.) junior varsity team against Amelia County High School. He was asked to compare that with the elder Verlander's, which came against the Brewers.

"I didn't need any great diving plays," he said. In case a little joking from his brother wasn't enough, there was also another incident. While walking with teammates Magglio Ordonez and Zach Miner, the three were stopped by a security guard who asked to see their IDs. Ordonez and Miner had theirs, but Verlander didn't. The man who was the talk of the nation just one week ago wasn't recognized by the guard. After a couple minutes, he was allowed to rejoin his teammates, but not without another round of joking. "I guess a no-hitter doesn't mean anything to these guys," Miner said. (Michael Phillips, MLB.com, 6/18/07)

Justin Verlander's first no-hitter didn't go unnoticed in the nation's capital.  President George W. Bush hosted Verlander in the White House's Oval Office. The two talked for about 20 minutes, with the main topic of conversation being baseball.

"'I was very nervous before I went in there,' Verlander said. 'I mean, you're visiting the President in the Oval Office. But he was a very personable guy, and it was a very natural conversation.'

"The nation's leader is also a huge baseball fan, dating back to the days when he owned the Texas Rangers. He spoke knowledgeably with Verlander about several members of the Tigers, and congratulated the pitcher on his no-hitter, saying that he was able to watch portions of the game.

"He also asked about the current Tigers who were part of his Texas team, including Kenny Rogers and Ivan Rodriguez.

"'He's a huge baseball fan,' Verlander said. 'He really knew who everybody was. We talked about baseball and about our team, and he knew pretty much everybody on the team.'

The afternoon visit began with Verlander eating lunch with a friend of his in the White House mess hall. He said the food was prepared by one of the White House chefs, and was "unbelievable."

"We went in, he talked a little bit about the Oval Office, some of the history and the paintings and the desk he has," Verlander said.

Verlander received a few souvenirs from the day, including a photo of him and the President, a tie clip, and golf balls with the Presidential seal.  (Michael Phillips - 6/20/07 - MLB.com)

Justin says he chose uniform number 35, "because of Frank Thomas. When I was a kid (in Manakin Sabot, Virginia, population 3,800), the first time I had to pick my number was in Little League. There was a box of jerseys, and the coach goes, 'All right. Who wants what number?' I settled on Thomas because he could hit, and he's one of those guys everybody likes."

Once Verlander got to Goochland High, however, he had to rethink the 35. "The numbers didn't go that high," Justin said. "I had number 4." The high school retired that uniform #4 because of his high school exploits.

"When I got to the Majors, I was number 35 again," Verlander said. "And when I faced Frank Thomas for the first time, it was a full-circle moment. I stepped off the mound and was like, 'Holy crap!' I got him out (on a fly to center). My girlfriend got me an autographed bat of his, to symbolize how it's come full circle." (Sports Illustrated-8/06/07)

People that know Justin know he drives really fast. Where does he take his Porsche to drive fast? Laughing, Verlander says with a laugh, "Uh—the track? It just depends when I feel like going fast. I try not to get caught." How fast have you been? "175," Justin said. Where? "Don't worry about it," he responded.

Teammate and good friend Jeremy Bonderman was interviewed by Steve Greenberg of The Sporting News during 2010 spring training, and said, "The thing is, Justin doesn't care what anybody thinks of him. I'll say it—he's really cocky; but he's cocky all the time, whether he's pitching great or struggling. As much as you might want to ride him for it, he's not one of those people who's going to change who he is just to please other people. It's one of the things I like about him most.

"During the spring, we eat dinner together, go golfing, play paintball. We drive to a theme park in Orlando and go on this slingshot ride and a big free-fall ride. We hang out off the field probably four times a week," Bonderman said.

"I absolutely will not ride in Justin's car. He drives crazy—he has that need for speed. He loves his Porsch. I think I value my life a little more than he does right now," Jeremy said.

"Justin works harder than anybody I've ever met. When he runs, he pushes himself to the point he almost pukes. When he lifts, he gets so focused an intense. From the day he got to the big leagues, he's said he wants to be a Hall of Famer. That's confidence. No one has more of that than Justin."

Justin threw his second no-hitter against the Toronto Blue Jays on May 7, 2011.  (Associated Press 5/7/2011)

On May 16, 2011, Justin announced the creation of Verlander's Victory for Veterans program. Verlander will use his personal suite at Comerica Park to host local veterans who suffered injuries serving in Iraq or Afghanistan, as well as their families.

"He wants to ... commend and congratulate and honor the sacrifice and dedication that all of our veterans have shown, [those] recently returning from Iraq and Afghanistan," Tigers president/general manager Dave Dombrowski said. "And for everything that they do for our country, he's here to thank them through this program."

"Thanks to the Tigers organization and Mike Ilitch, I have the opportunity to have a suite here at the ballpark," Verlander said. "And the first time I had the opportunity to use the suite, my girlfriend Emily, did, it was one of my first starts here at home, and it didn't go very well. So me and Emily, both being somewhat superstitious, decided that that's never going to happen again. The suite is not going to be used on my start days."

While on the field just before a game, Verlander continued, he noticed the recent Tigers tradition of having a veteran bring the game ball to the mound and be recognized by the crowd. It's a cause that hits home for him because he has a cousin, Christopher Verlander, deployed in Afghanistan. His grandfather, Richard Verlander, is a World War II veteran.

"We decided that it would be a good idea to let them use the suite on days I'm not using it," Verlander said. "Why not, just to say my appreciation and say my thank-you? The feedback we got was tremendous. I got so many letters and responses, not just because of the injured veterans or whoever was using the suite at the time, but their families as well. They got to share this moment with their family, which is not something that happens very often."

The result was a formal program. The suite holds about 18 people, which allows for up to three veterans and their families to use it for a game.

In 2011, Verlander won the AL Cy Young Award by a unanimous vote. And a week later, after weeks of controversial conversation, it was announced that Verlander was the American League MVP also—the first starting pitcher in a quarter-century to win the MVP. The A's Dennis Eckersley won the MVP in 1992, but Boston's Roger Clemens was the last starting pitcher MVP, back in 1986.

Richard and Kathy Verlander were finishing a book, Rocks Across the Pond, while Justin was months away from putting the finishing touches on a glorious season for the Tigers.

"After I retired in January 2011, we started speaking to a lot of youth groups, young athletes, and their parents," Richard Verlander said. "We noticed that there's a lot of information available for athletes in regards to the game—like playing and lessons and getting better. But we often lamented the fact that there wasn't more in the way of a roadmap for parents.

"So we thought this would be a great opportunity to share some of our stories and ideas with other parents coming along with kids, but not necessarily just all baseball players."

Richard and Kathy Verlander's other son and Justin’s brother, Ben, recently completed his sophomore season at Old Dominion and will be playing summer ball for the Staunton Braves of the Valley Baseball League. (June 2012)

In 2012, Verlander was getting around in a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG with a 563-horsepower 6.2-liter V8 engine.

Verlander's cuisine of choice the night before he pitches for the Tigers. His order from Taco Bell is three crunchy taco supremes, a cheesy gordito crunch, and a Mexican pizza, no tomatonever varies. And the level of his performance the next day rarely does either.

April 1, 2013 was Verlander's sixth straight Opening Day start.

Verlander has been known to blurt out exclamations in frustration on the mound. He does it the first time he takes the mound during spring training workouts, so of course he’s going to do it during a game. His parents got him to cover his mouth with his glove when he can so that lip-readers can’t pick it up on TV.

Former Red Sox and current MLB Network personality Kevin Millar says Justin is the best non-PGA golfer he has ever played with.

In May 2013, the hitter in the Verlander family paid a visit to Comerica Park. It wasn't a pre-draft workout for Old Dominion slugger Ben Verlander, whose three-homer game put his name in scouts' notebooks. Instead, it's a week to visit his big brother along with their parents while the Tigers are home.

It also was an opportunity for more hitting work with Tigers hitting coach Lloyd McClendon, who helped the younger Verlander on his swing last summer.

"Coach McClendon has really helped me with my swing a lot," young Verlander said. "I came up here last summer (2012) and took it into this season. He helped me a whole lot. Just coming back and being able to work with him in the cages and getting out on the field with him is great."

Being able to rub it in to his brother might be even better. He just finished his junior season with a .367 average, 11 home runs and 44 RBIs, earning him all-conference honors. Three of those homers came against Northeastern on March 9, which had Justin gushing.

"I actually haven't given him any grief about it," Ben Verlander said. "He's actually been the one. I read in an article that he admitted I was the better hitter. He's never admitted I was the better anything, so to see that was pretty crazy."

To see people suggesting that the younger Verlander could get a hit in the big leagues before his big brother is crazier.

"That's kind of the family joke now," he said with a laugh. "I still like to give him a hard time about it."  (Jason Beck / MLB.com / 5-23-13)

Justin bought his father his dream car, a Corvette. His father then purchased a license plate for it that read "MVP Dad."

Justin finally received his Lamborghini Aventador Roadster in 2014. He had paid almost $400,000 for it. The max speed is 215 mph. "I've been waiting for it for like two years, so when I got it, I was like a kid at Christmas," Verlander said. He also has a Mazarotti.

August 2014: Tigers players usually spend the third weekend in August trying to avoid the traffic of the Woodward Dream Cruise. Verlander, an avid car collector, apparently took a drive right in the middle of it.

Verlander tweeted a video from Instagram from what looks like his orange Lamborghini driving down Woodward Avenue and looking at the classic cars in the cruising lane.  He has been looking for a classic American muscle car.

The Woodward Dream Cruise is an August tradition in the suburbs north of Detroit. Hundreds of thousands of people gather as classic car enthusiasts come in to drive their prized vehicles down Woodward, honoring a tradition that goes back to the 1950s and 1960s. The Dream Cruise runs through the suburbs of Birmingham and Royal Oak, where several players stay during the season. (Jason Beck - MLB.com - 8/16/2014)

Verlander has been a noted workout fiend ever since he broke into the big leagues for good in 2006. He also has been meticulous about his workouts, taking note of how he feels physically as each season goes on and then adjusting his offseason program to address changes. Part of that comes from his parents, who used the daily routine to channel his energy in school.

March 31, 2016: Justin used to threaten his younger brother, Ben, about what would happen if they ever faced each other.  "I've always told him my whole life I'm going to hit him," he joked.

Instead, it was the other way around, with the younger Verlander getting big brother for a home run in a Minor League game.

"I thought about throwing behind his back," Justin Verlander said, "but I decided to throw him one down the middle instead. I'm sure he'll enjoy that for a long time." (Jason Beck - MLB.com - March 31, 2016)  

March 18, 2017: The Tigers have had a month at Joker Marchant Stadium to get ready to take the field again. Their guests couldn't have waited that long. Perry, a 3-year-old poodle up for adoption, was excited enough at the Grand Slam Pet Adoption that he was standing on his hind legs to greet anyone who stooped down to say hello. He had three interested suitors before he stepped on the field, where his small accident coaxed a laugh from the crowd watching.

Charlie, a 4-year-old Boston Terrier mix, was much calmer but clearly loved the attention as Tigers players, stadium workers and passers-by fell for the kind eyes. Soon enough, Verlander and supermodel Kate Upton, Verlander's fiancée, gave him a hug.

Chiclet, a tiny Chiahuahua, was small enough for Verlander's father, Richard, to easily cradle, but big enough to catch the attention of Justin Upton's young daughter Sydnee. She would reach out from a distance, only to bring her hand back in when the dog would sniff. Eventually she felt comfortable enough to pet it.

Twenty-three dogs and counting had a chance to not only roam right field at the ballpark, but ideally find a forever home. The annual event, co-hosted by Verlander and Upton for three years running, helps raise awareness for the benefits of pet adoption through SPCA Florida as well as the K9's for Warriors project that finds companion animals for veterans dealing with the effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury from recent military service.

One such dog on display was Mac, a golden retriever who had just been connected with a needy home.

"It was a great event, obviously some great causes," said Verlander, who tossed five scoreless innings in the split-squad Tigers' 5-4 win over the Marlins after the event. "I think as with any event, it's growing and getting better and better. It seemed like it was a big step up this year, and it's exciting to be a part of."

Both causes are close to Verlander's heart. He grew up in a military family and founded the Wins for Warriors foundation years ago to help veterans who faced trauma adjust to life back home. He also grew up around dogs.

"I had dogs since I was born," Verlander said, "and I adopted my current dog when I was in college, my sophomore year. He's still kicking. He's doing good."

That dog is Riley. When Verlander and Upton became a couple, he also became part-caretaker of her dog, Harley, who has become somewhat famous through Verlander's Instagram posts. (J Beck - MLB.com - March 18, 2017)

October 21, 2017: Verlander was named MVP of the ALCS with the Astros.

KATE UPTON

On a night marked as one of the biggest dates on the New York social calendar: the Met Ball, the annual fundraising gala for the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Division, Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour has run the event since 1995, and everybody who's anybody gets an invite—a ticket will cost you $25,000. Among this year's guests: Kate Upton, model, actress, and Justin's longtime girlfriend/culinary spirit guide.

Kate was wearing something conspicuously shiny on her left ring finger. It's official, Justin and Kate are engaged to be married.  (Landers - MLB.com - 5/2/16)

November 4, 2017: Verlander and supermodel Kate Upton got married at the Rosewood Castiglion del Bosco resort in Italy.

Kate said, "It was really important to Justin and me that it feel like we were on vacation with our closest friends and family," Upton told Vogue. "We set up an entire afternoon dedicated to interactive games, which we called the Uplander Olympics. The games included a Ping-Pong tournament, cornhole, a football toss, relay races and an epic water balloon fight!"

The "secret garden" vibe consumed the wedding at the Rosewood resort, which Upton said was the first the property had ever held. She also revealed that she wore a custom-made Valentino dress for the ceremony. Following the vows, Upton surprised Verlander with a firework show during the cutting of the cake. The couple danced the night away before moving to a nearby villa for some late-night karaoke—all in the same week Verlander and the Astros won the World Series. 

After their honeymoon, Upton tweeted Justin with the question.  "Which was better. A World Series win or our honeymoon?" Verlander's reply was that he shared a GFI of Tracy Morgan in "Cop Out" emphatically saying "Nope".

Feb 7, 2018: Justin Verlander's impactful presence with the Astros on and off the field was a huge reason the club won the 2017 World Series. The veteran pitched some of the best baseball of his career after coming over in a trade with the Tigers on Aug. 31, and he was named MVP of the ALCS. Verlander carried himself as the ultimate professional and brought an aura to the clubhouse that permeated every corner.

When 2018 Spring Training got under way, the Astros had the luxury of having six weeks of Verlander in camp for the first time. That's six weeks for younger pitchers like Lance McCullers Jr. and Gerrit Cole to watch Verlander's every move.

"His presence will immediately make everybody sit up straight, stand up a little bit more, have a little bit more energy," Astros manager A.J. Hinch said.

Verlander will be 35 by the time the first Grapefruit League game hits. In his career, he's started nearly as many games as Keuchel, McCullers and Morton combined, and thrown for more innings. He has an AL MVP and Cy Young Award and will be an invaluable resource.

Sure, this spring will be about Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa, Alex Bregman and George Springer, but Verlander's presence in West Palm Beach, Fla., should not be overlooked. (B McTaggart - MLB.co  - Feb 8, 2018)

April 27, 2018: The father-son duo of Johnny and Jeff Agar compete in triathlons and marathons with one another. And their teamwork is a little unique. While Jeff swims, runs and bikes, he is pulling Johnny behind him. Johnny has cerebral palsy, which causes him some physical limitations. Still, that doesn't deter him from participating in these contests that test your strength and endurance.

Team Agar completed the Ironman North American Championship in Texas, which consists of 140-plus miles of physical activity. And on this occasion, Johnny walked the final mile on his own—a feat he's never accomplished before.

As part of preparing for the event, Under Armour made sure the Agar's were taking care of—and meeting Justin Verlander was part of it. In addition to attending the Angels-Astros game, Johnny got to meet his all-time favorite athlete who happened to be starting that night: Verlander gave Johnny a pep talk before Ironman, making this a night he will never forget. 

Great athletes inspire each other. After tossing a gem, @justinverlander stopped by to deliver a few winning vibes to his friend @team_agarj before his big race in Texas. #WillFindsAWay.  (J Kleinschmidt - MLB.com - April 27, 2018)

July 2018 : Verlander was selected to play in the MLB All-Star game.

July 13, 2018: A lot has happened to former Tigers ace Justin Verlander in less than a year. Most notably, he's added two rings: one from his new marriage and the other from the World Series he won with the Astros last season 2017. Verlander said that he doesn't regret waiving a no-trade clause to Houston. He also expressed his fondness for the Tigers organization and their fans, as well as the city of Detroit, where he played 13 seasons. "Detroit will always have a special place in my heart," Verlander said. "I'm rooting for them, just not against us. I miss the Detroit summers. It's hot down here."

The Aug. 31, 2017, trade from the Tigers has paid off for Verlander, who was named the 2017 American League Championship Series Most Valuable Player against the Yankees. This season, he is 9-4 with a 2.05 ERA through 20 starts. 

But it wasn't an easy call for Verlander to leave Detroit for Houston. "I was concerned with how the Tigers fans would react," Verlander said. "As far as a pure baseball decision, it was a pretty clear-cut, yes. But when you're thinking about what I started in Detroit and the relationship I created with the fans there, all that stuff matters to me. I wanted to leave on a good note and not leave a sour taste in their mouth.

"I think everybody understood how tough a decision it was and why I made the decision. The organization was going in a different direction and I definitely wanted to win a World Series, and the opportunity wasn't going to be in Detroit at that juncture and I didn't have time for a rebuild. I hope those fans understand how much they meant to me over my career."

Based on public opinion, Verlander, 35, did leave Detroit in good graces. A large number of Tigers faithful pulled for the Astros in the World Series, where they defeated the Dodgers in an exciting seven-game series. "Even though he's gone, he's still very revered in Detroit," Tigers catcher James McCann said. "You can tell on social media during the World Series last year, you could see all the Detroit people were rooting for the Astros because of Verlander.

"He did a lot for Detroit, on-the-field stuff and off-the-field endeavors. He's a guy that will always be special to the city of Detroit, just for what he did in his time there." As a Tiger, Verlander was a six-time All-Star, winning the AL Most Valuable Player and Cy Young Award in 2011. He also threw two no-hitters for the Tigers, as well as leading the AL in strikeouts four times.

"The way the sport is, there's a business side, as well," McCann said. "For him, it was good move. He got himself a World Series ring and the success he's had [in Houston]. He did what was best for him. I'm sure it wasn't an easy decision for him and we're happy for the success he's had." Verlander began his Astros career by going 9-0 in his first nine games (including four postseason starts), which featured wins in Games 1 and 4 of the AL Division Series against Boston and Games 2 and 6 of the ALCS against New York.

The Tigers acquired outfielder Daz Cameron, right-hander Franklin Perez, catcher Jake Rogers, and a player to be named (outfielder Juan Ramirez) for Verlander, who was 183-114 in his career with the Tigers. (R Dean - MLB.com - July 13, 2018).

July 14, 2018: When an announcement is important, you don't have to dress it up in a ton of verbiage or pomp and circumstance. The news itself says all that needs to be said. That was certainly the case when Kate Upton posted a photo on Instagram with a simple caption: "#PregnantinMiami @justinverlander." Justin Verlander and Upton are ready to welcome their first child into the world:

Verlander and Upton were married in Italy just three days after the Astros won the World Series, causing him to miss the team's parade. We'll be waiting for the gender reveal in the coming months and, of course, the scouting report on the future Verlander's fastball.(E Chesterton - MLB.com - July 14, 2018)

July 9, 2018 : Verlander has many reasons to be grateful, and his recent marriage to supermodel/actress Kate Upton just might be the biggest blessing of his life.

In fact, the 2011 Cy Young Award winner credits Upton for saving his baseball career, according to an article from Bleacher Report.

As a member of the Tigers in 2014, Verlander was slumping miserably with a soaring ERA and a disappointing win total. He was told by a Tigers coach to get an MRI on his sore shoulder. Figuring he would need surgery that would put his career in jeopardy, Verlander cried. Severe depression came along with the physical injury. Upton helped Verlander find the way.

"She was instrumental in me not ... like, jumping off a bridge," Verlander told Bleacher Report about Upton, whom he first met in early 2012.

Aug 24, 2018: You can't put a price on a World Series title. Though the win may be priceless, there's a tremendous cost to the victory, at least when you're visiting the losing city. Verlander's World Series win against the Dodgers cost him a million dollars at a Beverly Hills hotel.

Verlander, who helped the Astros defeat the Dodgers in the 2017 World Series, learned that lesson the hard way after eating at The Beverly Hills Hotel's restaurant. Yes, that's right: It's a $1,000,000 charge for being the "Dodger Killer." At least Verlander has 24 other teammates who could help split the bill.

Aug 25, 2018: One day after showing off a million-dollar receipt for his lunch for being a "Dodger killer" from the Beverly Hills Hotel, Houston Astros ace Justin Verlander revealed that his meal was comped. The hotel jokingly charged Verlander an extra $1 million since Houston beat the Los Angeles Dodgers to win the World Series last year.

Astros pitcher Justin Verlander had lunch in Beverly Hills, and he was charged $1 million by the waiter for "Dodger Killer" after prevailing in the 2017 World Series. The receipt went viral, for many things, including how expensive the items were, such as the $30 pancakes, $42 chicken salad and $10 cranberry juice. "The manager came over, and we ended up laughing about it," Verlander said. "They actually ended up comping the meal. Everyone was talking about how expensive the pancakes were and the salad. It was comped. It worked out well for both sides." (ESPN News Services and AP Associates - Aug 26, 2018)

Nov 10, 2018: The past calendar year or so has treated Justin Verlander very well. In November, 2017, he won his first World Series with the Astros, married Kate Upton three days later (in Italy, no less). And in July, they revealed that their first baby was on the way.

Well, we can now report that one of baseball's preeminent power couples has added a new member as Genevieve Upton Verlander was born on Nov. 7.  Both parents shared heartwarming photos on Instagram welcoming their daughter to the world. Welcome, Genevieve, and congratulations to Justin and Kate!

2019 Opening Day: It was certainly not surprising to anyone that Astros manager AJ Hinch called Justin Verlander into his office Friday to inform him he would start on Opening Day for the 11th time in his career, but that didn’t diminish the impact of the moment on the ace pitcher.

“Most of us were probably aware I would most likely be starting Opening Day, but he does a good job of putting things in perspective,” Verlander said. “When he called me into the office, he was like, ‘Congratulations, this is your 11th. Think about that.’ It’s really cool to have him relay the importance of certain things to make you appreciate it more.”

Verlander, 36, will start the Astros’ opener March 28 against the Rays at Tropicana Field against Blake Snell, who edged Verlander by 15 votes in 2018 to win his first AL Cy Young Award. The top two Cy Young finishers in the National League—winner Jacob deGrom of the Mets and runner-up Max Scherzer of the Nationals—will also face each other on Opening Day, something that has happened only twice previously (both in 1979) since the Cy Young was introduced in 1967.  (Brian McTaggart - MLB.com - March 8, 2019)

July 2019: Verlander represented the Astros in the All-Star Game.

300 AND 3,000

Sept 28, 2019: Maybe at some point when he’s long since retired, Justin will grab a baseball record book and start flipping through the pages. Maybe then he’ll have a better understanding of his place in history and the names of the greatest players in the game whose glory he now shares.

That stuff is hard to wrap your mind around when you’re still chasing milestones, memories and wins. Verlander’s tremendous 2019 regular season came to an end when became the 18th pitcher in baseball history to reach 3,000 strikeouts, as well as hitting 300 strikeouts in a season, in the Astros’ 6-3 win at Angel Stadium.

Verlander put the finishing touches on his Cy Young-caliber season by striking out 12 batters in six innings to win his 21st game of the season and send the Astros to their 106th win and clinch home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

“I think it’s one of those things you keep your head down and keep pitching,” Verlander said. “I am thankful to be able to reach 3,000, incredibly thankful. It was never an end goal for me. I think, really, it’s just a huge step along the way. Obviously, I’m not near the end of my career, so just stay on the gas and keep trying to pitch as long as I can and see what happens.”

After not striking out a batter the first inning, Verlander posted 11 in the following four innings, reaching 3,000 with his fourth-inning punchout of Kole Calhoun, who reached first base on a wild pitch and scored on Andrelton Simmons’ homer in the next at-bat. Verlander started the year with an outside shot at 3,000.

“Getting to that number meant a lot to me tonight,” he said. “I knew I was six away, but I only struck out five last time I faced them, so these guys have been really tough against me all season long. I almost honestly kind of wrote off 300. I thought it was going to be a lot to ask for, based on how these guys don’t strike out much and how they had battled me all season long. Next thing you know, I got 3,000 and I was like, ‘All right, whew.’”

Robinson Chirinos, who caught every one of Verlander’s 34 starts this season, hugged him after the 3,000th strikeout and told him he was sorry he didn’t catch the slider that Cole swung through and went for a wild pitch.

“He was like 'Don't worry about it,’” Chirinos said. “I lost that pitch because Calhoun is so on top of the plate, so the ball was coming into him and it hit my foot and went the other way. I was laughing that it happened in the worst moment. Something to remember. Good thing [Verlander] got to 3,000."

In the sixth inning, Verlander struck out Calhoun again for his 12th whiff of the game and 300th of his season—a career high. He joined Gerrit Cole (316 strikeouts) as the only set of teammates to strike out 300 in a season since Randy Johnson (334) and Curt Schilling (316) for the 2002 D-backs.

“When 3,000 was getting close, he found ways to get a lot of strikeouts,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “When 300 got close for the season, he bore down even more. Big night for him. Great night for our team."

When Verlander struck out Cole Calhoun for No. 3,000, Verlander (21-6) soaked up the moment, which included a nice ovation from the crowd. He tipped his hat a couple of times as he stood behind the mound while the Angel Stadium scoreboard flashed a message acknowledging the feat. His teammates awaited with hugs in the dugout.

“I honestly haven’t had a moment to really have it set in,” he said. “My teammates gave me a good speech after and everybody gave me a great hug. Hopefully this is one of those moments that we look at and it’s just one of the special moments of the season that was extremely special.”

As he walked off the field at the end of the sixth, Verlander waved to the crowd again and blew a kiss to wife Kate Upton, who was sitting in the first row behind home plate cheering on her husband. He gave a quick speech in the clubhouse postgame before rushing out to meet reporters.

“I probably showed a little bit more emotion for the 300th than I did the 3,000th, because I really didn’t expect to get there in this game,” he said. “Very thankful to be able to have a good game like this and get both accomplishments. It hasn’t set in yet.”

Verlander is the second pitcher to get 3,000 strikeouts for a career and 300 for a season in the same game. Johnson did it on Sept. 10, 2000. Of the 18 previous pitchers to reach 3,000 strikeouts, only three aren’t in the Hall of Fame: Roger Clemens (4,672), Schilling (3,116) and CC Sabathia (3,093), who’s still active. Only Nolan Ryan (5,714) and Verlander (3,006) have 3,000 strikeouts and three no-hitters.

The 36-year-old Verlander went 21-6 with a 2.58 ERA and 0.80 WHIP, .172 opponents’ batting average in 223 innings this year, striking out 300 and walking only 42. It’s the kind of monster season that could earn him his second Cy Young Award, but Gerit Cole has made it a two-horse race.

“He certainly didn’t hurt his case,” Angels manager Brad Ausmus said. “I know that. Looking at him and Cole, you are kind of splitting hairs. They both had outstanding seasons. He looked pretty sharp tonight other than the two home runs he gave up tonight. He looked pretty good tonight. I’ve seen plenty of him. I'd rather not see him pitch against us often.”

Simmons’ homer on the pitch following the 3,000th strikeout put the Angels ahead, 3-0, but José Altuve hit a two-run homer in the fifth and Josh Reddick added a three-run blast later in the inning to put Houston ahead and ensure the playoffs come through Minute Maid Park.

“Obviously helping your team win is a big, big step, but getting to help JV to that milestone with the win was obviously another big step,” Reddick said. (B McTaggart - MLB.com - Sept 28, 2019)

Oct. 1, 2019: For the second year in a row, infielder Alex Bregman and pitcher Justin Verlander were named the Astros Most Valuable Player and Pitcher of the Year, respectively, by the Houston chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.

Verlander had one of the best seasons of his Hall of Fame-caliber career, going 21-6 in 34 starts with a 2.58 ERA and a career-high 300 strikeouts. In addition to strikeouts, Verlander also set career bests in WHIP (0.80), opponents’ batting avg. (.172) and opponents’ on-base-pct. (.219). He threw his third career no-hitter on Sept. 1 at Toronto and reached 3,000 career strikeouts in his final start on Saturday in Anaheim.

Oct. 3, 2019: Verlander earned the Baseball Digest/eBay MLB Pitcher of the Year Award.

Verlander and Ryan Zimmerman were college teammates at Old Dominion.

Nov. 10, 2019: Baseball had never before had an official star squad that salutes a full season's worth of work the way other major professional sports do. But the results of the voting for the first All-MLB Team finally arrived at the Winter Meetings. The Astros Verlander was named to the first team starting pitching group.

2019 Season: Verlander, at 36 years young, had one of those epic "age is just a number" seasons. On Sept. 1, he threw his third career no-hitter (and his second in Toronto), making him the first pitcher to no-hit the same team on the road twice, and the third to no-hit the same team twice in any venue, along with Tim Lincecum (vs. the Padres) and Addie Joss (vs. the White Sox). Verlander was great all season, though.

His 0.80 WHIP was the third lowest by a pitcher in a qualified season in the Modern Era (since 1900), behind only Pedro Martínez in 2000 (0.74) and Walter Johnson in 1913 (0.78). Verlander's efforts led to an AL Cy Young Award, the second of his career; he also won it in 2011. His seven-year gap between Cy Young Awards is the longest in history.

April 4, 2020: Justin and his wife, Kate Upton, announced they would be donating his weekly salary to different charities that support coronavirus relief.

“Obviously, this is an extremely difficult time for the entire world,” Verlander said. “There’s so many people that are in need, whether it’s those in the front lines battling this disease head on or someone who’s at home and has lost their job and needs to provide basic necessities, such as food and water. We have decided to donate that paycheck.”

Upton said the couple would pick a different organization each week “who’s doing really good work right now” to donate the money to. She said they would also be highlighting the organization that they choose each week.

“So stay tuned,” Verlander said. “We will be announcing the first organization as soon as we receive the first paycheck. And everybody stay safe out there.”

Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association finalized a deal that, in part, ensured players would get paid while the sport continues to wait out the coronavirus pandemic. The plan includes partial compensation for the players based on service time. (B McTaggart - MLB.com - April 4, 2020)

Dec 14, 2021: The Astros’ contract with Verlander has been made official. Verlander signed a one-year contract for 2022 with a player option for 2023 to return to the Astros on Dec. 1, prior to the expiration of the current CBA.

After working with the MLB Players Association, the Commissioner’s Office approved the deal, returning Verlander to the team he’s pitched for since coming to Houston in a trade with the Tigers in August 2017. The deal is worth $25 million for each season, a source told MLB.com.

Verlander, 38, has recovered after missing the entire 2021 season following Tommy John surgery that was performed on Sept. 30, 2020. Verlander started on Opening Day of the pandemic-shortened ’20 season and injured his forearm. He rehabbed the injury throughout the summer and suffered a setback late in the regular season, just prior to perhaps getting back into a game.

In 2019, his last full, healthy season, Verlander enjoyed one of the best years of his career en route to his second Cy Young Award. He made 34 starts and went 21-6 with a 2.58 ERA and a 0.80 WHIP in 223 innings. He threw his third career no-hitter and reached 3,000 career strikeouts, while whiffing 300 in a season for the first time. “The last season I was healthy, I won the Cy Young,” Verlander said in May. “Anything on top of that is gravy. I definitely think I can get back to the pitcher that I was [in 2019], at the least.”

Verlander is attempting to become the 10th known pitcher to come back from Tommy John surgery after undergoing the procedure at 37 years of age or older. He will turn 39 in February and has said repeatedly he wants to pitch until he’s 45 years old. The contract was first reported as agreed to on Nov. 17, when Justin’s brother, Ben, was the first to tweet about a deal being reached. (B McTaggart - MLB.com - Dec 14, 2021)

March 13, 2022: Once he knew he was going to have Tommy John surgery and miss the entire 2021 season, Justin turned off baseball in his mind and on his television. He immersed himself in his rehab and his family. And he wanted to make sure he was in the right place mentally and physically when he was cleared to pitch.

Verlander toyed with the idea of returning to the Astros late last year, but after his doctor warned him that he could be ending his career “in a blaze of glory,” he chose to get ready for 2022 instead. That meant finding somewhere to play, and after fielding multiple offers and having long talks with his wife, Kate Upton, while on vacation in Italy last November, he made the decision to return to Houston.

Verlander said he was “invigorated” and “excited” after throwing his first live batting practice of the spring at Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. The 39-year-old, who had Tommy John in September 2020, has thrown only one game—six innings against the Mariners on July 24, 2020—in the last two years.

“I feel so blessed to be here,” he said after throwing 33 pitches to hitters on the back fields. “But I’m hoping to come out of it better and when I look back in who knows how long—five, six, seven years? I’m thankful for the time that I have, not only with my family but what I’ve learned and how it’s probably going to extend my career.”

Verlander is attempting to become the 10th known pitcher to come back from Tommy John surgery after undergoing the procedure at 37 years or older. And probably no one has had it done with 2,988 career regular-season innings on his résumé, including 12 years of at least 200 innings pitched from 2007-19.

“I think I’m kind of a case study,” he said. “I think a lot of guys who have Tommy John surgery are younger or earlier in their career and don’t have 3,000 Major League innings under their belt, or close to it. I’ve talked to a lot of people about this. I’m not going to try to set an expectation of less innings. I’m going to go out there and try to replicate a normal season for myself and treat everything like I normally do and hope the muscle memory of 15 years of however many years with 200 innings is still there.”

The baseball lockout didn’t do much to derail Verlander’s preparation for Opening Day. He has a home in Jupiter, Fla.—just down the road from the Astros’ Spring Training site. And he had a physical therapist, a workout facility and players to throw with and against at his disposal. He expected the lockout to last a bit longer, which is why he says he’s a few days behind where he’d normally be this time of the spring.

Verlander would be a lock to start on Opening Day for the Astros on April 7 against the Angels, but that might require pushing himself a little harder than he wants to in the next three weeks. He said he’s “a hair behind” and likely won’t be built up to throw 100 pitches by then.

“The last thing I wanted to do coming off surgery was build up and build back down and then build up again,” he said. “That was never on the radar for me. I wasn’t going to do that again [like he did in spring 2020 after COVID-19 shutdown camp]. I was like, ‘OK, let me try to build up to a place where I think I can get ready in a three-week period,’ and I kind of managed my schedule around that and started getting on a five-day routine and then the deal came together so quickly.”

“Without baseball, these last two years went so fast,” he said. “My daughter’s growing so fast, and I really cherish the time I got to spend with her. Walking in the locker room and being back here around the guys, it’s really a weird feeling because it feels like yesterday I was with them, but it was a long time ago. A lot’s happened in the world, a lot’s changed for myself and the team and the world. It’s kind of a weird experience, but it feels great.” (B McTaggart - MLB.com - March 13, 2022)

July 2022: Verlander was selected to play in the MLB All-Star Game.

At age 39, after nearly two years off the field, Justin Verlander has learned to be a better teammate.

When I asked Verlander his reaction to that assessment, he guessed, with a smile, that catcher Martín Maldonado was the person who talked about his seeming transformation. It wasn’t Maldonado, I said. But then I thought, “Who would have a better perception of a starting pitcher than his catcher?”

“Those two years he was out, he (learned) how much he missed it, how difficult it is to be away from the game,” said Maldonado, who has spent much of the past five seasons with the Astros. “Overall, he’s a totally different guy from ’18-’19.” He also credits his wife, model Kate Upton, and their daughter, Genevieve, 3, for helping him gain a broader perspective. Genevieve — “Vivi,” for short — “cracked me wide open,” Verlander said. 

Said Verlander, whose major-league career began in 2005: “I’m maturing with age and understanding the way I see things isn’t the way everybody else sees things. As a matter of fact, it’s quite the opposite,” he said. “I’m trying to do a better job listening to people, trying to communicate better, talking with my wife a lot about our daughter and having a little girl and wanting to be able to communicate with her on a deep level.

“It started me on a path of trying to learn how to be more communicative with everyone around me. The first step is probably listening better. It makes me a better communicator, which probably makes me a better teammate.”

To the Astros Verlander’s impact in the clubhouse is not nearly as important as his impact on the mound. Entering his start against the Twins, Verlander’s major-league-best 1.95 ERA is one of the season’s most stunning developments, making him a front-runner for his third AL Cy Young Award. But to Verlander, the same principles apply on and off the field. In every aspect of his life, he’s always trying to get better.

“I put a lot of work into myself, not just pitching,” he said.

His search for improvement as a pitcher was perhaps most vividly demonstrated by his incorporation of the Astros’ analytically driven approach after joining the team in a trade from the Tigers on Aug. 31, 2017. Upton, whom he married in November of that year, said his natural inquisitiveness carries over into his personal life, too.

“He loves to learn, and for any new parent, there’s so much to learn about parenting,” said Upton, 30. “It’s constantly trying to be better versions of ourselves, to be good role models for her, be involved with her, communicate with her about things she’s interested in. You’re always evolving as a parent.”

Upton said Verlander compartmentalizes well, separating his life as a pitcher from his one as a husband and father. People sometimes will ask her, “How do you live with someone so intense?” And she will respond, “I don’t. That’s who he is at the field.” 

“I was always such a one-track mind about baseball. I’m a different person now. It makes me feel lucky to be here. And it makes me feel like this is not all my life is.”

Yet as he approaches his 40th birthday, coming off a surgery that historically prevents older pitchers from returning as workhorses, Verlander is producing arguably his best season.

He is on track to finish with an ERA below 2.00 for the first time in his career. His adjusted ERA, accounting for external factors such as ballparks and opponents, is 98 percent above league average. It was 72 percent above in 2011, when he won his first Cy Young Award; and 79 percent above in 2019, when he won his second. 

Pitchers older than Verlander have won Cy Youngs. Roger Clemens was 42 when he earned the honor in 2004, and Gaylord Perry was 40 when he captured the award in 1978. But only one other starting pitcher, Jacob deGrom, has won a Cy after undergoing Tommy John surgery. And deGrom was eight years removed from the procedure when he won the first of his back-to-back NL Cy Youngs in 2018.

“I know it would be very emotional for both of us,” Upton said. “He’s worked so hard to get back on the field. And a lot of people told him he couldn’t do it. For him to not just do it, but be so dominant again, it’s really amazing to see. His dedication the whole time through was really inspiring for me.”

Verlander, too, acknowledged he would be quite emotional if he won his third Cy Young after overcoming such trying circumstances. He was borderline emotional just talking about it.

“I can’t even put it into words. It would be incredible,” Verlander said. “My family, a new perspective on things, feeling like the game could have been taken away from me at any moment.”

Now that he’s back, he’s savoring it all. (Rosenthal-TheAthletic.com-August 23, 2022)

Sept. 2022: Verlander chose to play for team USA in the 2023 WBC.

Oct 8, 2022: Verlander was named Astros Pitcher of the Year.

Nov. 2022: A pair of future Hall of Famers were honored for their remarkable turnaround seasons in 2022.

Cardinals designated hitter Albert Pujols added one more trophy on his way to retirement after being named National League Comeback Player of the Year. And Astros ace Justin Verlander took home the American League honor, the league announced.

 When asked what kept him motivated at the end of his career in his forties, Mets pitcher Justin Verlander kept it very simple.

No spring chicken, Verlander credited his family and, in particular, his daughter for his career transformation at this stage of his career. He described his daughter Genevieve as the catalyst behind his desire to still take the field to this day and give it his all.

While Justin Verlander reserved most of the praise for his daughter, he did sneak in a compliment for his wife, too.

"I think family for one, for me. I think the birth of my daughter, it really just changed me to my core. My wife would hate me if I didn't say that she didn't probably start the process, but then man my daughter just jump-started everything man, it's just such a blessing," 

When asked about why he wants to keep playing, Verlander was quick to admit that baseball is his life.

"I put in all of this work my entire life. I have dedicated my life to this game, and here I am still having success. I don't play for accolades, I put in the hard work and the results come in because of that.  Finally, Justin Verlander hopes to set an example for his daughter and slowly introduce her to his career and work. While it looks like the first chapter is slowly coming to an end, Verlander's second and more beautiful life is only getting started.  (Nikhil Mahajan Madhavan - Feb 27, 2023)

The Athletic consulted with five Hall of Famers pitchers with first-hand experience, to discuss Justin Verlander pitching at age 40: Nolan Ryan, Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, John Smoltz and Randy Johnson. Here's what they had to say:

Maddux: Last season, I watched a playoff game or late-season game that Verlander pitched. I was amazed. His breaking stuff was still sharp. His fastball was still there.

Johnson: On the teams that he’s played, whether it was in Houston or now with the Mets, he’s got offense, good defense and he’s got a good bullpen, and those are essential. You can save bullets by being able to come out of a game and having a bullpen that can pick you up so you don’t have to feel like you have to go and pitch an extra inning or two.

Smoltz: Don’t be surprised if Justin Verlander pitches until 43.

Glavine: Now I do think that as you get older you tend to lose a little bit, although for Verlander, that doesn’t seem to be the case.

Smoltz: He’s got certain goals I think he wants to reach even though he’s already plugged himself into the Hall of Fame.

Ryan: With his work ethic, body type and the way they use him, his chances have improved considerably.

Smoltz: This guy’s a beast.

Maddux: There’s no telling how long he can keep going.

Smoltz:  I’ve said since the time I retired that everybody should be looking at Justin Verlander. We’re not going to see starting pitchers in four years at this current rate ever even get to maybe 35. When you see the decline of innings, that’s one thing. When you see the decline of years, that starts getting really concerning to a guy who loves the game. Verlander, he’s a 10-speed bike. He doesn’t pitch in 10th gear all the time. He has gears. He knows his body. He has survived two eras of baseball.

Johnson: He’s going into playing at age 40 like this, he must be doing something right.

Glavine: In Verlander’s case, the question wouldn’t be why are you doing it. It’d be, why wouldn’t you be doing it? (Sammon - May 2, 2023 - The Athletic)

May 10, 2023:  Verlander joined an exclusive club becoming the 21st pitcher in Major League history to beat all 30 teams. While striking out seven over seven innings of one-run ball, Verlander helped lead the Mets to a 2-1 victory over the Reds at Great American Ball Park. (B Weinrib - MLB.com - May 10, 2023)

Oct 3, 2023: JV earned AL Player of the Week after pair of crucial wins.

Feb 14, 2024:  It didn’t take long for the Astros to suffer their first bit of bad news at the start of Spring Training on Wednesday, when veteran right-hander Justin Verlander said a shoulder issue has put him behind his throwing schedule by a couple of weeks.

Verlander provided the update to reporters inside the Astros’ clubhouse prior to pitchers and catchers hitting the field for the first time at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. Verlander, who turns 41 on Tuesday, said he had a “hiccup,” but it was too early to tell if it would impact his availability for Opening Day. He said he’s thrown off the mound three times so far this offseason.“I’m a little bit behind schedule now,” he said. “I had a little hiccup early on that’s resolved itself, but I have to be really cautious at how I’m building up. I guess my body doesn’t respond the same at 40 as it did at 25. I’m a couple of weeks behind.” Verlander said he felt some discomfort in his shoulder when he started playing catch and had to shut down his throwing program for a while. (B McTaggart - MLB.com - Feb 14, 2024)

May 25, 2024: Verlander moves into top 10 on all-time K's list surpassing Hall of Famer Greg Maddux for 10th in all-time strikeouts in the second inning of the 6-3 win over the A's at Oakland Coliseum with 3.372 strikeouts. 

Verlander also earned his 260th career win that moved him into the top 40 on the all-time list, tied with Hall of Famer Ted Lyons. 

Richard and Kathy Verlander promised their son a sports car if he earned a college scholarship. So, in the fall of 2002, a gangly goofball from Goochland, Va., drove onto the campus at Old Dominion University in a black Mustang. 

Three months earlier, the Pittsburgh Pirates pondered picking Justin Verlander in the Major League Baseball draft. The family had set a $500,000 asking price to pry Verlander away from a college commitment. Pittsburgh passed. 

Across 49 rounds and 1,481 other picks, 29 other clubs did, too. Strep throat had sapped some of Verlander’s velocity to start his senior season at Goochland High, scaring away scouts and perhaps some of the more prestigious college programs. 

“But by the end of the year, my velo was back up — just nobody was there to see it,” Verlander said. “Except Old Dominion.” 

“When he first rolled up to campus, I’ll be honest with you, he was a little cocky,” said Evan Chipman, the classmate who caught every start of Verlander’s junior season. “He didn’t get a very welcome reception when he first got there.”

“I mean, he rolled up in a black Mustang with the license plate saying JV BRINGING IT 94.”  

“I had nothing to prove, man,” Verlander said. “I had an inkling that I had talent and I wanted to see where that took me. It wasn’t until college that I learned how good I was.”

Two decades later, those who were there call it their claim to fame: witnessing the formative years of a future Hall of Famer. 

“He had the ability to be likable while he was kicking your ass, if that makes any sense,” said Shohn Doty, his first collegiate pitching coach. “Our guys respected his work ethic. It was nice to have that guy and have that confidence and that arrogance.” 

Finding the balance between the two is difficult. Verlander possessed natural talent few players then or now could fathom. Flouting it felt natural, but furthering it was his main goal. 

Within two months on campus, Verlander usurped upperclassmen for a Friday night starter’s role he never relinquished. He touched 97 mph in his first collegiate start, surprising scouts and even himself.  Verlander’s 427 strikeouts remain the most in both Old Dominion and Colonial Athletic Association history. 

“I remember him saying, ‘What I’m going to be is, I’m going to be a professional baseball player, but I’m going to be in the Hall of Fame,’” said Jesse Schoendienst, one of Verlander’s classmates and roommates. 

Verlander’s starts became appointment viewing. In a ballpark that had sometimes seated just 60 fans, crowds swelled, there to see the heat that Verlander’s sports car promised. He would’ve preferred a Mustang with the v8 engine, but settled for the v6 with a vanity plate that still prompts teasing from former teammates. 

“B-R-N-G-N-I-T,” Verlander recalled, raising a finger while reciting each letter, and laughing at his teammates’ claims it included a number. “I even drove it to my first big league camp. You can imagine how that went. 

“But, I was bringing it, so I was like ‘f— it.” 

It rained on the first day of fall practice in 2002, something Brent Sollenberger shouldn’t remember, but Verlander made impossible to forget. The lanky freshman introduced himself while Sollenberger, a junior captain, played catch with classmate John Oehler down the left field line. 

Oehler asked the rookie whether he was any good. Verlander told both teammates they’d soon find out. A waterlogged baseball sat nearby. The upperclassmen wondered whether the freshman could throw it out of the stadium. Verlander could. 

“We’re both kind of jaws dropped, but he was a freshman, we couldn’t let him know that he impressed us,” Sollenberger said. “Basically give him a little ‘Nice throw, rookie.’”

“From that day forward, you knew there was something a little different about the guy.” 

Verlander arrived on Old Dominion’s campus as “a long, gangly dude with these long arms, but running back legs and massive core strength,” Schoendienst said.

“Probably 160 pounds soaking wet,” throwing partner and fellow pitcher James Burok said. “The coaches always said, ‘James, you’re going to run with Justin. Justin, you’re going to eat with James.'” 

They called a three-story townhouse on West 48th St. the “baseball house.” Six players and at least one dog called it home. Most who lived there marvel that they made it through two years unscathed. Some wonder how the house is still standing. 

“I think it’s burned down three times,” Chipman said. “That house was decrepit. It was really bad. Just a college, nasty house.”

Verlander, Chipman, Burok and Schoendienst all moved in before their sophomore seasons. Verlander’s dog, Riley, became one of the house pets. Verlander would purchase $5 dishes at Goodwill when the house ran short; washing the ones already in the sink seemed too tall a task. 

Verlander’s silliness grew on all of his housemates, who still watch him from afar — the roommate who once refused to do dishes, now one of this generation’s greatest pitchers. 

“I mean this in a good way, but when I see him being interviewed and how eloquent he is and how thoughtful he is and how professional he is, it’s really cool to see — not saying he wasn’t eloquent and professional or anything like that — but he had his quirks and was goofy,” Burok said.

“Back then Natural Light cost $8,” said Schoendienst, who had the house’s lone fake ID. “He’d give me, like, $8.10. I’d go get it and come back and he’d be like ‘Where’s my change?’ I’d be like ‘Dude, it’s nine cents change.’ And he’d be like, ‘Yeah, I want my change.’ Like adamant.” 

Frugalness is the first quirk many of Verlander’s former teammates bring up. Now that he’s made more than $370 million, most believe Verlander has likely grown out of it. 

Verlander mastered a Waldo costume that earned acclaim at campus Halloween parties. He became known for riding his bike around campus for hours. Once, after a night of indulgence by Verlander, Schoendiest saw a police officer threaten him with a charge of biking while intoxicated. 

To avoid it, Verlander straddled the bicycle and walked it back to the dormitory. He picked leaves off trees along the way, telling teammates, “look, I’m a giraffe.” 

“I think he knew he was dorky and just kind of embraced it,” Chipman said. “He’s just goofy. He was kind of like a kid that hadn’t been let out in a while.” 

The house hosted a plethora of parties. Indoor golf became a house tradition on nights off — sometimes with actual golf balls that blasted through drywall. A miracle shot Verlander still remembers caromed off a keg and into a waiting solo cup.

The roommates stayed together for two years, and the house witnessed its share of testosterone-fueled scraps over small things, be it unattended dog droppings, dishes piled up in the sink or the assorted stresses college can bring. Animus never lingered for more than a few minutes, but one instance still lives in college lore. 

Chipman, Verlander’s catcher, scrapped with his pitcher over some now-forgotten house issue.

“My claim to fame,” Chipman said. “I’ve punched that guy in the face.” Old Dominion used Nike bats with caps on the end that popped off. Verlander grabbed a bat and filled it with tennis balls. The brash freshman who spent much of the season bragging to teammates about his power corked a bat to crush balls even farther.   

Afterward, Verlander put the illegal bat in the wrong rack. Sollenberger, the team’s unquestioned leader, grabbed it during the game. He drilled a double, but didn’t see the tennis balls fly out of the bat and onto the field. 

An umpire soon informed him — while calling him out at second base. 

“My parents are in the stands. My grandmother’s in the stands,” Sollenberger said. “I can sit back and laugh at it now, but at the time I wasn’t as lighthearted about it.”

The league did not suspend Sollenberger, and umpires allowed him to remain in the game. Still, both he and Guzzo steamed inside the Old Dominion dugout. A culprit came forward after a few minutes of hard lectures. 

“Verlander literally has to raise his hand and be like, ‘I did it coach, that was me,’” Schoendienst said.

Sollenberger harbors no ill will now. His son is 15 and watches Verlander with great interest. Every now and then, his dad will detail their college years. 

“When you have somebody that works like that, on top of the God-given natural talent that he has, there’s no envy of the success,” said Burok, an eighth-round pick of the Colorado Rockies. 

“I played with guys in the minor leagues who had all of that God-given talent and didn’t work. And for Justin to recognize how good he was and to work as hard as he did, that’s a testament to him.” (Rome - Aug 20, 2024 - The Athletic) 

Justin Verlander wasn’t on the Houston Astros’ playoff roster, but the 41-year-old future Hall of Famer isn’t quite ready to retire, he told The Athletic’s Chandler Rome after Houston was eliminated from the postseason Wednesday.

“I want to continue to pitch, to compete,” Verlander said. “I’m not ready to step away yet.” 

Verlander was 5-6 with a 5.48 ERA in 17 starts this season, spending two months on the injured list with a neck problem.

The three-time Cy Young winner had a 3.95 ERA in 10 starts before going on the IL in June and a 8.10 ERA in seven starts after coming off, completing more than five innings in just one of those outings — his final start of the season, a win at Cleveland. Perhaps more importantly, Verlander pitched 90 1/3 innings, well short of the 140 innings he needed for a vesting $35-million option for 2025. Instead, Verlander will enter free agency. (Rosecrans - Oct 2, 2024 - The Athletic)

Jan 15, 2025: Justin Verlander is preparing to enter the 20th season of his brilliant MLB career after recently signing a one-year contract with the Giants. But while the former MVP and three-time Cy Young Award winner is all about baseball, he isn't all about baseball.

Verlander and his wife, Kate Upton, are part of a consortium that has acquired a 99% stake in the Colombian soccer club La Equidad, according to a report in The Athletic (subscription required). Other investors include actors Ryan Reynolds, Rob McElhenney and Eva Longoria, as well as former NBA All-Star Shawn Marion.

La Equidad isn't the first soccer club Verlander has invested in -- another group, also led by real estate investor Al Tylis and Club Necaxa executive Sam Porter, acquired about 50% of Mexico's Club Necaxa in 2021.

After winning a pair of World Series rings with the Astros, will Verlander's next venture involve winning championships in soccer? Stay tuned.

Of course, Verlander -- who turns 42 on Feb. 20 -- doesn't seem to be planning a full-time shift to that arena any time soon, telling reporters upon signing with San Francisco that he would like to try and pitch until he's "45 or more."

Given that he's just two seasons removed from winning his third Cy Young Award, who's to argue with that goal? But speaking of goals, Verlander will surely be keeping track of the happenings in the world of soccer as he continues to burnish his Hall of Fame credentials in baseball. (M Randhawa - MLB.com - Jan 15, 2025)

2025 Spring Training: The number on the back of his new Giants uniform will be familiar, at least, as Verlander will wear his usual No. 35, a decision that didn’t come lightly considering its deep ties to franchise icon Brandon Crawford. Verlander expressed some consternation about sticking with the number when he first signed with the Giants, but Crawford gave his blessing for the three-time Cy Young winner to wear it after the two spoke over the phone.

“I just wanted to make sure I went about it the right way,” Verlander said. “Getting his blessing was really important.”

Verlander has long donned No. 35 in honor of his childhood idol, Hall of Fame slugger Frank Thomas, and said he couldn’t imagine himself wearing another number as he continues his push for historic milestones like his 300th career win.

“Having [president of baseball operations] Buster [Posey] say, ‘Wouldn’t it be something if you could win your 300th game in a Giants uniform?’ is just something that stuck in my head,” Verlander said. “I was talking to my wife, and I was like, ‘What if that happens?’ If that does happen, I can't see myself wearing any other number than 35.” (Maria Guardado - Feb. 12, 2025 - sfgiants.com)

June 20-23, 2025: JV was on the paternity list.

Aug 10, 2025: Justin Verlander entered Sunday three strikeouts shy of becoming only the 10th pitcher in Major League history to reach 3,500 career K’s.

The 42-year-old right-hander didn’t wait around to achieve the milestone, as he joined the exclusive club after striking out the side in the first inning of the Giants’ 8-0 loss to the Nationals at Oracle Park. Verlander struck out six total to push his career total to 3,503.

“I was happy to get there, happy to have the moment with the fans,” Verlander said. “It’s a cool milestone. I really appreciate what it’s taken to get there.”  The Giants celebrated Verlander’s rare feat by flashing a congratulatory message on the Oracle Park scoreboard, with the three-time Cy Young winner receiving a standing ovation from the crowd as he walked off the field. Verlander tipped his cap to the fans and then received more applause from his teammates once he returned to the dugout. Verlander currently ranks 10th all-time in strikeouts, trailing only the nine other members of the 3,500 strikeout club: Nolan Ryan (5,714), Randy Johnson (4,875), Roger Clemens (4,672), Steve Carlton (4,136), Bert Blyleven (3,701), Tom Seaver (3,640), Don Sutton (3,574), Gaylord Perry (3,534) and Walter Johnson (3,509).

“It just goes to show how long he’s been doing it, how hard he’s worked to be as good as he is,” third baseman Matt Chapman said of Verlander. “I’m excited for him. I’m sure he wished today went a little different, but it’s something to be proud of. It’s not something that many people do.” (M Guardado - MLB.com - Aug 10, 2025) 

Aug 27, 2025: Verlander puts Walter Johnson in rearview on career K chart. (A Soto - MLB.com - Aug 27, 2026)

Sept 7, 2025:  Justin Verlander took another impressive step on his likely path to the Hall of Fame at Busch Stadium, recording his 3,535th career strikeout to pass Gaylord Perry and move into eighth place on the all-time list.

The milestone strikeout -- against Nolan Gorman for the second out of the sixth inning of San Francisco's 3-2 loss to the Cardinals -- was Verlander’s 119th in his first season as a Giant. And in passing Perry, he found himself just 39 behind the seventh-place hurler on the list, longtime Los Angeles Dodger and Hall of Famer Don Sutton. (J Jones - MLB.com - Sept 7, 2025)

TRANSACTIONS

June 2004: The Tigers drafted Verlander in the first round, out of Old Dominion University. Much later, on October 22, 2004, Verlander signed a five-year contract with the Tigers and scout Greg Smith. It was worth around $4.5 million (more details above).

January 20, 2009: The Tigers ($3.2 million) and Verlander ($4.1 million) filed for salary arbitration. On February 3, 2009, Justin and the Tigers agreed on a one-year, $3.7 million, avoiding arbitration.

February 3, 2010: Verlander signed a five-year, $80 million contract with the Tigers.

March 29, 2013: Verlander and the Tigers reached agreement on a new contract that could exceed $202 million. Justin would have been eligible to become a free agent after the 2014 season.

Aug 31, 2017: The Tigers traded Justin and cash or a PTBNL to the Astros for RHP Franklin Perez, outfielder Daz Cameron, and C Jake Rogers. The trade happened not only on the final day of the trade deadline but literally in the final few seconds.

March 23, 2019: The Astros agreed to a two-year, $66 million extension with Verlander. 

Dec 2021: Justin chose to stay with the Astros. He signed a two-year, $50 million contract. 

Nov. 10, 2022: Verlander declined a $25 million option with the Astros in order to become a free agent.

Dec 5, 2022: Verlander agreed to a two-year deal with the Mets for $86 million. The deal includes a vesting third-year option.

Aug. 1, 2023: The Mets traded Justin Verlander to the Astros. Verlander is owed about $93 million, meaning the Astros will pay Verlander about $29 million for 2 1/3 years. In return, the Mets received outfielder Drew Gilbert, rated as the Astros' best prospect by MLB.com, and minor league outfielder Ryan Clifford.

Oct 31, 2024: JV became a free agent.

Jan. 7, 2025: Verlander agreed on a one-year deal with the San Francisco Giants. The deal is worth $15 million.

2024 Season: Verlander, 41, missed a substantial portion of the season due to shoulder and neck injuries. Houston reinstated him from the injured list in late August after an absence of more than two months owing to said neck issues, and while he was solid in his return effort (two runs in five innings versus the Red Sox), his season quickly snowballed thereafter. The three-time Cy Young winner and future Hall of Famer was torched for a catastrophic 8.89 ERA over his final six starts, which included individual games that saw him yield four, five, six and eight runs. (Steve Adams - October 1, 2024)

Justin once had a 94-101 mph, four-seam FASTBALL that runs in on righthanded hitters. But his velo is down to 93-97 mph.

He has a powerful knee-buckling hammer 79-82 mph power CURVEBALL that has late depth. His starts out looking like it's going to hit a righthanded batter in the face. He also has an 87-90 mph SLIDER that has good, late bite slicing out of the strike zone, and an 87-90 mph CHANGEUP with late fading and sinking action that has hitters wondering when it's going to get here. (Spring, 2018)

On some nights, that curve has such excellent depth and late biting action low in the strike zone that you can watch hitter's knees literally buckle. (May, 2016)

2016 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 57.2% of the time; Change 8.5% of the time; Slider 17%; Curve 15.9% of the time; and Cutter 1.9% of the time.

2017 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 58% of the time; Change 4% of the time; Slider 22%; Curve 15.5% of the time.

2018 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 61.4% of the time; Change 1.4%; Slider 22.1%; Curve 14.7%; and Cutter less than 1% of the time. Average velocity: 4-seam 95.6 mph, Change 87.9, Slider 87.1, Curve 80, and Cutter 92.1 mph. 

2019 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 50% of the time; Sinker less than 1%; Change 4.2%; Slider 28.5%; and his Curve 17.3% of the time. Average velocity: 4-seam 94.8 mph, Sinker 93.5, Change 87.2, Slider 87.7, and Curve 79.6 mph. 

2020 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 54.8% of the time; Change 5.5%; Slider 38.4%; and his Curve 1.4% of the time. Average velocity: 4-seam 94.7 mph, Change 86.3, Slider 86.9, and Curve 78.7 mph.

2022 Season Pitch Usage/Avg. Velo: Fastball 50.8% - 95 mph; Slider 28.2% - 87.5 mph; Curve 18.8% - 79.2 mph; Change 2.2% - 86.2 mph.

2023 Season Pitch Usage/Avg. Velo" Fastball 50% - 94.4 mph; Slider 26% - 87 mph; Curve 19% - 78.3 mph; Change 4.5% - 85 mph.

2025 Season Pitch Usage/Avg. Velo: 4-seam Fastball 45.7% - 94 mph; Change 8.5% - 84.7 mph; Slider 31.4% - 85.4 mph; Curve 14.3% - 78.5 mph.

He had control problems in college. "That's one thing we really tried to work on was getting him to relax," said Jim Tyrrell, Verlander's pitching coach at Old Dominion. "He has a tendency to get worked up and get going because he really tries. He doesn't like to lose. Everything we do as far as conditioning he always tries to finish first. Every once in a while, he gets a little bit ahead of himself."

"He's definitely a lot smoother and cleaner," Tigers assistant general manager Al Avila said. "Now he comes over that front leg and throws on a good downward plane. He can locate the low fastball now and throw his curveball for a strike."

Justin is more than willing to knock a hitter off the plate. He makes sure he establishes the inside corner of the plate.

Justin never expects to give up a hit. And when he reaches the 3rd or 4th inning without having done so, he starts thinking a no-hitter might happen. Asked in the 2011 season if a third no-hitter is a probability at some point, he agreed it is.

"You put me on the spot, but I would have to say yes," Verlander said. "But it's a funny game, and you look at the Hall of Fame pitchers that never threw a no-hitter. A lot of things have to go your way."

In June 2007, Tigers first baseman Sean Casey, talking about players who are able to make it to first base on Verlander:  "They will say, 'He has the nastiest stuff I've ever seen.'"

In 2009, Justin tied with C.C. Sabathia and Felix Hernandez for most wins in the America League (19). And Verlander led the AL in strikeouts with 269.

Research by Detroit Free Press writer John Lowe found that Verlander had 11 games of 120 pitches or more this season, four more than the combined staff of the next-closest team, Philadelphia. Verlander threw 3,940 pitches, 294 more than any other pitcher—more than any AL starter since Roger Clemens in 1997 with Toronto.

Verlander's 2011 season is the result of a long accumulation of knowledge that has suddenly all clicked into place.

"It's hard for me to put a finger on what I know, but it's there," he says. "Time. Experience of pitching at this level for a while now. You log it all away, and it opens up a new game to you, almost."

This is the sound of a gifted athlete who has just entered his prime. The average velocity of his fastball actually slightly decreased in 2011, from  95.4 mph to 95.0, is deceiving, explains Leyland, who says he saves his triple-digit heat for when it's required.

"He's figured out you don't have to go all out, helter-skelter, from pitch one," Leyland says. "If you throw the ball down and away, 92 miles an hour, you'll get a lot of outs."

"If he wanted, he could throw 100 all game," says Verlander's regular catcher, Alex Avila. "He's done that before, and by the sixth inning he's got 100 pitches. Maybe not coming out full throttle from the beginning allows him to get those one-pitch, two-pitch outs, have a little more command, throw a few more strikes."

In 2011, Verlander became the best pitcher in baseball because he stopped getting mad about the silly things and stopped trying to strike out every hitter. The outcome of one pitch determines what he will throw the next. He always thinks a few pitches ahead.

"This year, I feel like I've found myself to be more mentally prepared and physically prepared. That combination has led to what's going on now," Justin said near the end of the regular season.

WORKHORSE

Before August 31, 2012, it had been over two years (August 17, 2010) since he lasted less than six innings—63 consecutive starts. Thus ended the longest streak by a Major League pitcher since Steve Carlton racked up 69 consecutive starts of six or more innings from Sept. 13, 1979, to April 13, 1982. It's the longest streak by a Tigers pitcher in modern franchise history, dating back to 1918, and the third-longest by a Major League pitcher since 1920 according to ESPN Stats and Info.

Bob Gibson holds the standard for the era with 78 consecutive starts of six innings or longer, from 1967-70.

Verlander has led the league in innings pitched in three of the four seasons from 2009 through 2012. And he has thrown more pitches than any other pitcher (25,247) over his seven-season career as of the start of the 2013 season.

The average speed of his fastball in 2012 was 94.7 mph.

Former Tigers ace pitcher Denny McLain, baseball's last 30-game winner, said Verlander was the kind of pitcher who could have succeeded in any era. 

Justin's the definition of a No. 1 starter. For starters, he understands and accepts that legacies are built on games in the postseason. Verlander wants to be out there when the stakes are the highest and the spotlight the brightest.

Center fielder Austin Jackson said: "We're definitely confident when he's on the mound." Verlander is capable of grabbing the momentum right back after a Tigers loss. 

According to fangraphs.com, Verlander's average fastball velocity was down 1 mph in 2013, from 2012's 94.3 to 2013's 93.3 mph. But Verlander has made it clear that focusing on one aspect of his game would be to ignore other important factors. Verlander has made so many mechanical adjustments that he had trouble keeping his delivery consistent in 2013.

"But I really felt like the last month of the season, I started to kind of get it to click," he said. "And with all the adjustments that I made, when I'm out on the mound, I've still got those in my head a little bit. I try to shove them in the back of [my] mind; you want to forget them and pitch. When I know things aren't right and I'm trying to get them right, [you think], 'Let's do this, let's do that.' I found the only thing is execution. I feel like my mechanics are where they need to be, and I need to execute. Just forget about all that and just make my pitches."

May 18, 2016: Verlander became the second pitcher in Tigers history to record 2,000 strikeouts. Verlander is the 76th Major League pitcher to reach the mark. Lolich racked up 2,679 strikeouts in his Tigers career.

2017 Improvements:  Rookie catcher John Hicks has known Justin long enough not to be surprised by anything he does on a baseball field. He has been watching Verlander dominate hitters since he was a boy back in Goochland, Virginia. But, the rabbit Verlander pulled out of his hat on August 20 had even Hicks shaking his head.

“Watching him is awesome, being behind the plate is unbelievable,” Hicks said, after catching Verlander’s eight-inning, two-hit win over the best team in baseball, the Los Angeles Dodgers. “You put down a finger and he might say yes or he might say no. But it doesn’t matter what he throws because it’s sharp and commanded. “He was throwing fastballs today that looked like they didn’t even see.”

Verlander’s fastball was overpowering for sure. But Hicks has seen that plenty. What he hadn’t seen before was Verlander throwing two different sliders. He broke out a cut-slider, which is thrown harder, at 91-92 mph, to go along with his normal slider that he throws at 87-88 mph.

“It was just before the game,” Hicks said. “He was like, ‘Hey, I got another one I can throw.’ So, I said, ‘Yeah, let’s work it in there.’ It’s pretty impressive that he can do that. It’s something he hadn’t necessarily been throwing all the time, and he just says before the game, ‘Yeah, I’ll throw that today, too.’”

The first one he threw was to Justin Turner in the first inning. He ended up throwing 30 sliders, unofficially, 10 were the cut-slider.

“I told him that after the first time he threw it, they were looking into the dugout like, ‘What was that?’” Hicks said. “It was huge. Both of the sliders were very good. It gave him something else he could mix in there. It’s really hard on a hitter. But it’s real fun for a catcher.”

Verlander has thrown the cut-slider before. It was his slider of choice in the second half of last year. But he’d been having more success this year after he went back to his old slider grip and took velocity off it. He acknowledged this was the first game he used both, but he would not say what his rationale was. “I can’t tell you all my secrets,” he said, smiling. (Chris McCosky- The Detroit News-Aug. 20, 2017)

April 15, 2018: With two former Cy Young Award winners taking the mound at Minute Maid Park, a pitching duel could have reasonably been expected between the Rangers and Astros. 

Bartolo Colon and Justin Verlander combined to accomplish something that hadn't been done since 1982, the year before Verlander was born. Colon was on a path toward history, taking a perfect game into the eighth inning before a Carlos Correa walk ended the perfect game bid, and a Josh Reddick double broke up the no-hitter. Colon would have become the oldest pitcher to throw either a perfect game or no-hitter in MLB history.

While the Rangers would go on to win the game, 3-1, in 10 innings, this contest will be remembered most for the epic performances of the two starting pitchers, who combined to give up two runs on two hits over 15 innings.

Here are a few facts to know about this amazing pitching duel:

• This was just the sixth game since at least 1908 in which both starting pitchers logged at least 7 2/3 innings without allowing more than one hit. The last time it happened was on Oct. 1, 1982, at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, where the Mets' Terry Leach locked horns with the Phillies' John Denny. Leach gave up one hit over 10 shutout innings for the victory (though he walked six), while Denny gave up one hit in nine scoreless frames and wound up with a no-decision. The list also includes Sandy Koufax's perfect game against the Cubs on Sept. 9, 1965, at Dodger Stadium, where Chicago's Bob Hendley took a tough-luck loss by allowing one unearned run on one hit in an eight-inning complete game.

• Colon (44 years, 326 days) took a serious run at becoming the oldest pitcher to throw a perfect game, or even a no-hitter. Randy Johnson is the oldest man to twirl a perfecto, when he was 40 years and 251 days old on May 18, 2004. Nolan Ryan was pitching for the Rangers when he threw his record seventh and final no-hitter against the Blue Jays on May 1, 1991. Ryan was 44 years and 90 days old at the time—or 236 days younger than Colon was. Ryan went on to pitch until age 46, throwing his final pitch in September 1993. 

• While his age pales in comparison to Colon's, Verlander is no spring chicken himself, having turned 35 on Feb. 20. That made this matchup the first time in recorded history that two starting pitchers age 35 or older both allowed no more than one hit in a game, regardless of innings pitched. There hadn't even been a game in which two age 35-plus starters allowed two hits or fewer and recorded at least one out by the seventh inning in more than 30 years. On Sept. 27, 1986, the Rangers' Charlie Hough (38) tossed a two-hit shutout to outduel Don Sutton (41), who gave up two hits and a run in 7 1/3 innings for the Angels.

• Verlander became the first Astros pitcher since 1986—when Ryan did it twice and Mike Scott once—to strike out at least 11 batters while giving up no more than one hit. However, Verlander is the first pitcher in franchise history to deliver that combination while also issuing no more than one walk.

May 16, 2018:  Justin struck out his 2,500th batter!  Verlander came into the game intently focused on one hitter in particular, one he hadn't yet faced: Ohtani. Verlander devoured the two-way phenom's hitting highlights in the visiting clubhouse for at least 15 minutes, taking detailed notes and discussing strategy with coaches and players. The game plan they came up with saw Ohtani go 0-for-4 with three strikeouts, the last of which gave Verlander 2,500.

"I'm hoping that he stays healthy so that strikeout is like, one day, when we look back, when I'm a grandfather on my deathbed, I'll be like, 'Yeah, my 2,500th strikeout was against that guy.'" Verlander said.  "I made a joke here in the clubhouse that my 2,500th strikeout came against a pitcher, but the best hitting pitcher I've ever seen. I think when it's all said and done, if that guy can stay healthy, he's a special talent. Not only on the mound, but at the plate. He's doing something nobody's really done since Babe Ruth, so I think we can all appreciate that."  —Verlander, on fanning Ohtani for his 2,500th strikeout  (Yang - mlb.com)

June 2, 2018:  Verlander took home AL Pitcher of the Month honors. Verlander, 35, guided the MLB's best rotation with a 0.86 ERA in six May starts. He allowed just five runs (four earned) over 41 2/3 innings and held opponents to a .153 batting average. Verlander also struck out 50 batters and issued seven walks. He leads the MLB with a 1.11 ERA this 2018 season. 

Verlander has won six Pitcher of the Month awards. This is his first time winning the award since he was a pitcher with the Tigers in 2016.

2018 Improvements: It's not surprising that Verlander, the front-runner for the AL Cy Young Award, is at the top of a list of successful pitchers. It is surprising that he's atop a list of most improved pitchers, because he was already really, really good last year. You wouldn't think there was that much else Verlander could have done.

You'd be wrong, because Verlander has stepped it up in every way. He's getting more strikeouts, allowing fewer walks and home runs, which is pretty much everything a pitcher needs to do. There's some evidence that a minor mechanical change to raise Verlander's release point has allowed his fastball and his slider to be even more effective. Whether or not that can be credited to the impressive Houston analytical group, he's been baseball's best pitcher this year—and the most improved. (August 19, 2018)

August 19, 2018: Verlander (12-8) became the 114th pitcher in Major League history to reach 200 wins, joining Bartolo Colon and (247) and CC Sabathia (244) as the only active pitchers to reach the milestone.

September 10, 2018:  Justin reached double-digit strikeouts for the 52nd time in his career. Verlander and Gerrit Cole became the first right-handed pitchers on the same team to strike out at least 250 batters in the same season since at least 1900. They are the first set of teammates to strike out at least 250 batters in a season since Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling in 2002.

March 7, 2018: It was certainly not surprising to anyone that Astros manager A.J. Hinch called Justin Verlander into his office to inform him he would start on Opening Day for the 11th time in his career, but that didn’t diminish the impact of the moment on the ace pitcher.

“Most of us were probably aware I would most likely be starting Opening Day, but he does a good job of putting things in perspective,” Verlander said. “When he called me into the office, he was like, ‘Congratulations, this is your 11th. Think about that.’ It’s really cool to have him relay the importance of certain things to make you appreciate it more.”

Justin began the 2019 season at age 36, having broken into the big leagues in 2005, two year before the iPhone. Yet since he joined Houston in a trade on Aug. 31, 2017, he had become as enraptured with technology as any millennial.

Immediately after the trade, the Astros had Verlander throw with the Edgertronic and Rapsodo, tools he never had with the Tigers. The camera revealed that Justin was "showing" his slider to hitters too early by having it pop up out of his hand. He changed his hand position to way behind the ball longer, creating the desired effect of having his slider look like a fastball as it left his hand.

The Rapsodo device revealed that the metrics on his 2-seam fastball—spin, break and path—were so poor that it recommended that Verlander stop throwing the pitch. Verlander immediately ditched the 2-seamer, which is designed to favor movement over pure velocity. (Tom Verducci - Sports Illustrated - 4/01/2019)

May 21, 2019: Sometimes, this is what you get with a Justin Verlander start. You get a flirtation with magic. You get dominance. You get something you might just remember. This is why it’s an event every time he steps on a Major League mound. This is also why Cooperstown beckons. Verlander flirted with his third career no-hitter for 6 1/3 innings in the Astros’ 5-1 win over the White Sox at Minute Maid Park.

Verlander, who yielded just that one hit in eight innings, stepped off the mound to gather himself as Abreu circled the bases and a warm ovation washed over the right-hander. Had he finished it, he would have become just the fourth pitcher to craft three no-hitters, joining a list that includes Nolan Ryan (seven), Sandy Koufax (four) and Bob Feller (three).

“He was really in control of the game obviously,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “Incredible night for a guy who is fun to watch pitch. He was completely dominant.”

Verlander was so dominant that Statcast tracked 28 swinging strikes, the most he has had in any game in the pitch-tracking era (since 2008). Before this game, he’d never had more than 24 in 365 regular-season games.

“You saw it tonight,” Verlander said. “One pitch in the wrong spot, and everything goes away. Pretty early on, I knew I had good stuff. The slider was the pitch tonight. When you’re attacking the zone, guys gotta swing. That’s the game. I want to stay on the offensive, not the defensive.”

As the drama began to build for Verlander’s run at a third no-hitter, he made a point of searching the seats behind home plate for Ryan, a boyhood idol. Ryan indeed was at the game, but watching from upstairs.

The two of them had chatted briefly, with Ryan encouraging him to throw more changeups, a pitch he said was important in the second half of his career.

“There’s a pretty elite group of guys that have three no-hitters,” Verlander said. “Seven is a whole different ballpark. I know that list gets really small with three, and it would have been cool to have him here if I could have gotten it. But I screwed it up.”

Verlander and White Sox right-hander Dylan Covey were locked in a brief scoreless duel until Astros first baseman Yuli Gurriel homered in the fourth inning. The Astros broke the game open an inning later by scoring four times, an inning in which they worked White Sox pitching for four walks and got a two-strike, two-run double from Michael Brantley.

“We hold each other to a high standard,” Brantley said. “It’s a brotherhood in here and next-man-up mentality.”  (R Justice - MLB.com - May 22, 2019)

June 1, 2019: When Verlander struck out Oakland’s Robbie Grossman in the seventh inning of the Astros’ 5-1 win at the Coliseum, Verlander passed Cy Young and moved into 21st place on the all-time strikeout list with 2,807. He dominated the A’s, finishing with eight strikeouts and one run allowed in eight innings, and said afterwards it was “pretty humbling” to pass a legend.

“Sometimes when you’re playing this game, it has the unique ability to really put things in perspective for you,” Verlander said. “As much as you try to keep your head down and keep pitching and not pay attention to whatever is going on, any time Cy Young pops up on your radar and you’re associated with him, it’s pretty special.”

June 12, 2019:  Justin struck out a career-high 15 Brewers in seven innings work. Verlander's 15 swinging strikeouts marked the fifth time in the pitch-tracking era (since 2008) a pitcher has had at least that many, joining Max Scherzer (twice), Carlos Carrasco and Danny Duffy.  Verlander threw 75 of 100 pitches for strikes and got 29 swings and misses, including 17 on his slider.

Verlander became the second Astros pitcher to record as many as 15 strikeouts without walking a batter, joining Hall of Famer Randy Johnson. Johnson struck out 16 batters with no walks on Aug. 28, 1998.  (McTaggart - mlb.com)

Verlander talks about his curveball:  “It was maybe late middle school, or early high school, that I started throwing a curveball. I was always kind of cautious of it. My first pitching coach had me throw it [in a casting motion], rolling it out of my hand and trying to drop it in a bucket. I think the coach’s name was Bob Smith. He was the one who taught me the curveball I used until I got to the big leagues. Then it changed.

“I’d thrown a knuckle curve. My pointer finger was all the way tucked, flush with the ball. But then, the big-league balls were so hard that I got a blister. I had to adapt. I had to change, so I went to a traditional curveball grip. This was kind of in the middle of the season, in 2006. And it was really bad. I had to pretty much rely on my fastball and changeup until I was able to get a feel for it.

“How different was the spin and the shape [compared to the knuckle curve]? I don’t know. We didn’t have stuff to measure that back then. I do know that I didn’t have much feel for it at first. I’d never thrown it like that. Once I did get a feel for it, it was just as good. I think the shape was generally the same.

“I’ve never changed how I release my curveball, although I have messed around with my hand placement on the ball. Once I started throwing my slider … I don’t want to have the same grip for the slider and the curveball, because I don’t want them to blend. What I did was basically switch to the opposite side of the horseshoe for my curveball.

“I switched my slider grip to the same side as my curveball in ’15 or ’16, so that’s when I flip-flopped my curveball. I couldn’t put a finger on exactly when it was, though. I change my grips pretty often. I’m always messing around with stuff. You have to change and adapt. I mean, we have so much technology now. We have immediate feedback on what we’re trying to do. It’s like, why wouldn’t I try to make a pitch better?

“Again, I’m not afraid to mess around with it. I’ll change grips in-season. I’ve changed grips in the middle of a game. My fastball always stays the same — I try to keep that consistent — but I’ll do it with my slider and my curveball. My changeup. My off-speed.” (David Laurila - FANGRAPHS - May 20, 2019)

August 4, 2019: According to ESPN Stats & Info, Verlander’s nine 200-strikeout seasons places him among some rare and talented company. He’s just the seventh pitcher in MLB history with such a record, joining the likes of Nolan Ryan (15), Randy Johnson (13), Roger Clemens (12), Tom Seaver (10), Pedro Martínez (9), and Bob Gibson (9).

Behind Verlander, the only two active pitchers approaching his record are the Nationals’ Max Scherzer and Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw, each with seven 200+ strikeout seasons under their belts.

August 16, 2019:  Justin set a franchise record by striking out 11 batters in seven innings, making him the first pitcher in Astros history to have at least 10 strikeouts in six consecutive starts. Randy Johnson (1998) and J.R. Richard (1979, 1980) each had streaks of five.

Aug. 31, 2019: It was deja vu all over again for Justin Verlander in Toronto, as he no-hit the Blue Jays for the second time in his career during Houston’s 2-0 victory at Rogers Centre.

It was Verlander’s third career no-hitter, with his first coming back on June 12, 2007, when Verlander was just 24. He made history again against the Blue Jays on May 7, 2011, with a 108-pitch no-hitter that was one J.P. Arencibia walk shy of being a perfect game.

With his third no-hitter, Verlander joined Nolan Ryan, Sandy Koufax, Bob Feller, Larry Corcoran, and Cy Young as the sixth pitcher ever to throw three or more in their careers. 

Sept 28, 2019: Verlander’s tremendous regular season came to an end when became the 18th pitcher in baseball history to reach 3,000 strikeouts, as well as hitting 300 strikeouts in a season, in the Astros’ 6-3 win at Angel Stadium.

Verlander put the finishing touches on his Cy Young-caliber season by striking out 12 batters in six innings to win his 21st game of the season and send the Astros to their 106th win and clinch home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

Verlander led the Majors with 21 wins while also pacing the sport in innings, WHIP and opponent batting average and finishing just behind his teammate, Gerrit Cole, in ERA and strikeouts. This is his second Baseball Digest Pitcher of the Year Award, following his 2011 AL MVP and Cy Young Award season with the Tigers.

Oct. 23, 2019: Verlander's fourth strikeout of the night, on a Victor Robles foul tip in the second inning of World Series Game 2, marked the 200th in the veteran’s postseason career. It broke a tie with John Smoltz to set a new record for the most career postseason strikeouts.

In 2019, Verlander won his second AL Cy Young Award. 

When he won his first one with the Tigers at 28 years old in 2011, Justin figured there would be a chance to earn a few more. Three agonizingly close second-place finishes started to seep doubt into Verlander’s mind about his chances of ever winning the award again.

Verlander, who lost by four points to David Price in 2012, five points to Rick Porcello in 2016, and 15 points to Blake Snell last year in 2018, proved to be as good as ever in 2019. He held off teammate Gerrit Cole in another close vote to win his second AL Cy Young and first as a member of the Astros.

“It was starting to become disappointing every time I came so close . . . and it just didn’t happen,” said Verlander, who had 13 first-place votes to Snell’s 17. “I put up some historic numbers in the history of baseball [in ‘18], and every time somebody had done something similar, they had won the Cy Young. Is it meant to be for me to win another one? I don’t want to call [winning a second] a relief, because it wasn’t. It just put things in perspective and made it all the better, all the more exciting for me and my family.” (B McTaggart - MLB>com - Nov 13, 2019)

March 30, 2020: Why Justin's slider is so nasty: 51 percent chase rate.

Verlander’s slider was key in his 2019 Cy Young campaign, as he got outstanding results on the pitch. He induced a 51 percent chase rate on out-of-zone sliders, which ranked second in the Majors among pitchers to throw at least 250 sliders out of the zone, and first among starters. (The only pitcher ahead of Verlander was Will Smith at 54 percent.)

Given how frequently batters swung at those sliders out of the zone, it should come as little surprise that Verlander got a lot of strikeouts on the pitch. His 127 slider strikeouts were second to only Patrick Corbin, whose slider was his most-used pitch, unlike Verlander.

Opposing hitters had a .119 batting average in at-bats ending on Verlander’s slider last season in 2019, and they didn't make good contact. It was one of Verlander’s best years with his slider, too, as his 40 percent whiff rate on swings against it was his highest since 2012. (S Langs - MLB.com - March 30, 2020)

July 9, 2020: A healthy Verlander unveils revamped delivery. The long layoff caused by the COVID-19 pandemic not only allowed Verlander to heal completely from March groin surgery that would have cost him the first two months of the regular season, but it allowed him to dig deeper into his mechanics and make some adjustments that have him feeling “fantastic.”

“One of my goals was to get my mechanics back to what they had been and get my velocity up to what it used to be, or better than last year, 2019, anyway,” Verlander said. “I looked at this as an opportunity to get better. I went through a full rebuild process, working on getting my mechanics where I wanted them. I went down the rabbit hole.”

Verlander said his mechanics last year weren’t sustainable over a long period without leading to more injury. He said his delivery last year was “extremely high and vertical and arched” and said his release point was 7 feet, 2 inches off the ground at one point. He wanted to get back to a release point of 6 feet, 5 inches, which is where he was a few years ago.

“That’s a huge difference in height,” Verlander said. “That’s where it started, and that’s what I intended to fix. And, like I said, a bunch of other things, which I was anticipating, popped up along the way, and I just kind of dealt with them along the way.

“I’m not perfect or exactly where I want to be yet, but very, very close. But today was a huge success for me, in my opinion, in just the way it felt.” (B McTaggart - MLB.com - July 9, 2020)

2019 Season: At age 36 in 2019, Verlander had one of the best seasons of his career. In 34 starts, he went 21-6 with a 2.58 ERA, 300 strikeouts and a 0.80 WHIP in 223 innings. His WHIP was the second-lowest in the past 100 years. 

Verlander is expected to be healthy to begin the 2022 campaign, and his presence should be a big boost for the defending AL pennant winners. Since arriving in Houston via trade in August 2017, Verlander has gone 43-15 with a 2.45 ERA over 74 starts.

May 10, 2022: Verlander continued his incredible start to the season in the Astros' 5-0 win over the Twins at Target Field by carrying a no-hitter into the eighth inning before Gio Urshela broke it up with a single to right field with one out. Verlander finished with eight scoreless innings, walking two while facing the minimum 24 batters.

Falling five outs shy of throwing his fourth career no-hitter didn’t do much to dampen Verlander’s enthusiasm about the way he’s pitching in his return from Tommy John surgery.

“I really felt fortunate to even be in the situation,” Verlander said. “Urshela broke it up with a nice, clean hit. Unfortunately, I’ve been [in this situation] many times before and had it happen. I’ve had a few heartbreaking ones in the ninth inning. This one, I think, is one of those you appreciate the fact [that] it’s a good outing and gave us a chance to win.” (B McTaggart - MLB.com - May 11, 2022)

July 18, 2022: Verlander struck out only three batters, but that gave him 3,094 strikeouts for his career and allowed him to pass CC Sabathia and move into 16th place on the all-time strikeouts list. He’s also now struck out more batters than any other pitcher in this century (since 2000).

2022 Season: After missing the entire 2021 campaign due to Tommy John surgery, and even though he was in his age-39 season, Verlander continued to defy time with another outstanding performance for the Astros. The right-hander led the Majors with a 1.75 ERA and 0.83 WHIP, and also led the AL with a .186 opponents’ batting average and .497 opponents’ OPS. Verlander’s ERA was the lowest for a qualifying AL pitcher since Pedro Martinez’s 1.74 with the Red Sox in 2000.  (Manny Randhawa - Nov. 4, 2022)

In 2022, Verlander won his third Cy Young Award.

2023 Season: He was 13-8 with a 3.22 ERA between the Mets and Astros.

2025 Season: Verlander posted a 5.48 ERA over 17 starts while dealing with shoulder and neck injuries last year.

2025 Improvements: Giants pitching coach J.P. Martinez said Verlander decided to try throwing a curveball “with added sweep” . (Maria Guardado - March 2, 2025 - sfgiants.com)

Aug. 4, 2025: Most career strikeouts on the road: 2,444- Nolan Ryan 2,206- Randy Johnson 2,124- Roger Clemens 2,000- Steve Carlton 1,792- Tom Seaver 1,760- Max Scherzer 1,744- @Giants Justin Verlander 1,742- Bert Blyleven 1,684- Gaylord Perry 1,676- Phil Niekro 1,637- Greg Maddux. (Brady Farkas - SI)

Aug. 26, 2025: They called Walter Johnson the Big Train.

He just got passed on the tracks of MLB history, though.

Justin Verlander now has struck out more batters than Johnson, who was considered maybe the first great strikeout pitcher in baseball's history.

Verlander has struck out 3,516 batters and counting, which moves him into ninth place on the all-time list.

Johnson now resides in 10th at 3,515. (Billy Heyen - The Sporting News)

Aug. 31, 2025: He became the oldest pitcher to record double-digit strikeouts since Randy Johnson, who fanned 13 at age 44 in 2008. In fact, in the last 17 seasons, only two pitchers aged 42 or older have managed a 10-strikeout game, Rich Hill in 2022 at 42 years, 169 days, and now Verlander at 42 years, 192 days, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

Sept. 6, 2025: In his 20th major league season, he threw six scoreless innings, allowing just three hits, no walks, and striking out six on 88 pitches. In the sixth inning, Verlander notched a career milestone by fanning Nolan Gorman for the second out, his 3,535th career strikeout, passing Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry to move into eighth place on the all-time strikeout list. (Abdullah Imran - ClutchPoints)

In the span of those four starts, Verlander has lowered his season ERA from 4.47 to 3.75, a significant improvement from his 5.48 mark last year. That's not bad considering that the start to his 2025 was rough enough that he didn't get his first win until late July. (Jack Baer - Yahoo Sports)

2025 Season: Verlander had hoped to pile up more wins after signing a one-year, $15 million deal over the offseason, but he went only 4-11 after the Giants struggled to provide him with consistent run support this year. It was a significant letdown for Verlander, who has made no secret of his desire to reach 300 wins, but he should have more opportunities to keep chasing that goal next year.

“I think if I can go out and make 29, 30-plus starts and give our team a chance to win for a few more years, then it’s possible,” Verlander said. “I’m not going to say it’s not. It’s definitely harder, though. If you make 29 starts, you’d like to win 10, 15 games. It wasn’t in the cards this year. But maybe this year wasn’t meant to be for wins. Maybe this year was meant to be kind of for health and kind of re-finding myself and getting used to taking the ball every five, six days and just kind of going out there and being able to log some innings. Maybe that will carry me where I need to go. ”Verlander went 0-7 with a 4.70 ERA in the first half and missed two weeks with a right pectoral strain, but he got back on track after the All-Star break, going 4-4 with a 2.99 ERA over his final 14 starts of the year. He delivered his best work down the stretch, logging a 1.96 ERA over his last seven outings. “Obviously, kind of a topsy-turvy season,” Verlander said. “The first half was quite difficult. I’m happy I was able to find some mechanical fixes to kind of get back in the right direction and pitch well in the second half.” (Maria Guardado - Sept. 27, 2025 - sfgiants.com)

Verlander has an excellent pickoff move. And it is natural for him. Justin is that rare righthander with a wicked pickoff move. The Tigers haven't done anything with his move, nor has Verlander spent an abundance of time with it. It's something that simply developed. It is very quick, especially for a righthander. That is because he has such quick feet.

Justin aids the process by timing his moves.

Midway through the 2010 season, Verlander had a new pickoff move. Instead of going straight to first base to hold the runner on, Verlander focused on holding the ball a little bit longer.

"It's something I know that I needed to do," Verlander said. "There was an adjustment that I made that I felt let me come set, then make a decision from there instead of having that twitch that tells me to go to first. I'm able to take a second and think about it. I'm able to come set and come over. Before, every time I came set, I was coming home, and every time I was picking, it was almost immediate."

And the first time he used the new move, Justin picked off two Minnesota Twins.

April 12, 2014: "My job is to pitch," Verlander said after his first two Major League hits and his first run scored. "Don't get me wrong, it feels great to get a hit." But his teammates weren't buying the modesty.

Verlander's hitless streak had gone on for eight years of Interleague Play and 26 at-bats of futility. It had endured a handful of near-misses, from the ball that landed just foul down the right-field line at Miami in September 2014, to the well-struck line drive that Joey Votto snared in Cincinnati two years ago. Verlander remembers those, and plenty others before.

"I think it's kind of been an anomaly that I hadn't had one yet," Verlander said. "I hit one down the right-field line off Tim Lincecum in 2007. I came close in Colorado. I lined out in Cincy. I hit one an inch foul in Miami (in 2013). I hit one an inch foul down the third-base line—I forget where that one was, but it was a long time ago."

His streak had reached the point where teammates like Rick Porcello had given enough ribbing and were pulling for him to get a hit so they wouldn't have to hear about it anymore. They got their wish soon enough.

Verlander came up with a runner on first and two out with Ian Kennedy hoping to end a rough first turn through the Tigers' lineup. Verlander took a first-pitch fastball over the outside edge, then got another fastball over the middle of the plate that he couldn't pass up, lashing a ground ball through the middle.

The smile on Verlander's face after he rounded first base showed how much it meant to him. The standing ovation from the large contingent of teammates in the dugout and Tigers fans behind it reflected their appreciation. 

"He'd been talking about it since Spring Training, so I was happy he got his first hit," Manager Brad Ausmus said. (Jason Beck - MLB.com - April 12, 2014)

Aug 2–Oct 2005: Verlander missed the last two months of the season with what was basically just a tired arm. An examination from Dr. Kyle Anderson in Detroit revealed what head athletic trainer Kevin Rand called minor posterior capsular inflammation caused by fatigue.

January 9, 2013: Justin underwent muscle repair surgery after he injured himself before Christmas during a workout. The team did not identify the "core muscle'' that was repaired, but called the surgery successful.

Dec 2013: Verlander underwent surgery on his abdominals.

Justin had injured his core while doing squats in December. He originally felt pain on his left side, but an MRI also showed weakening on the right side, and he ended up having surgery in Philadelphia.

March 29-June 12, 2015: The Tigers placed Verlander on the 15-day disabled list with a right triceps strain.

March 17, 2020: Verlander is going to be sidelined approximately six weeks after undergoing surgery on his right groin.

“Initially, the hope was that physical therapy would be the proper course of action,” Astros general manager James Click said. “However, after a recent setback in his rehab, the medical staff recommended that a surgical procedure was necessary."

July 9, 2020: The long layoff caused by the COVID-19 pandemic not only allowed Verlander to heal completely from March groin surgery that would have cost him the first two months of the regular season, but it allowed him to dig deeper into his mechanics and make some adjustments that have him feeling “fantastic.”

TOMMY JOHN SURGERY

July 26, 2020:  Verlander was shut down for two weeks after an MRI showed a right forearm strain.

Aug 17, 2020: Astros pitcher Justin Verlander, who suffered a right forearm strain in his first start of the season, threw off flat ground for the first time since he was placed on the injured list, manager Dusty Baker said. Verlander is aiming to return to the mound this season.

“It went very well,” Astros pitching coach Brent Strom said. “Not sure as to the intensity. I’m assuming it was just the beginning of a road to get him back, but all reports were good in terms of how he felt after it.”

Sept 12, 2020:  Sidelined with a sore elbow, Verlander was scheduled to do a bullpen session. Assuming all goes well, he’d pitch to hitters in the next step of his attempt to return before the end of the regular season. “We don’t have any reports on him yet,” Baker said. “He’s progressing well.”

Sept. 2020: Verlander announced on Instagram that he needs Tommy John surgery—the first time in his long and accomplished career that he has needed the procedure. Verlander, who has not pitched since Opening Day in July 2020, said he consulted with several doctors before reaching his decision.

Sept. 30, 2020: Verlander underwent Tommy John surgery on his right elbow.

Feb 27-Nov 3, 2021: Justin was on the IL while recovering from TJ surgery.

May 7, 2021:  Speaking with reporters for the first time in nearly 10 months, pitcher Justin said his recovery from Tommy John surgery is progressing smoothly, and he didn’t completely rule out a return to the mound for the Astros this year. (Editor's note: Verlander did not pitch in 2021.)

Aug. 30-Sept 16, 2022: Verlander was placed on the injured list with a right calf injury.  The MRI revealed fascial disruption, but no muscle fiber disruption. This distinction provided Verlander with a measure of relief, as well as optimism that he won’t miss too much time beyond what the IL stint requires.

March 30-May 4, 2023: The New York Mets placed Justin Verlander on the injured list with a low grade teres major strain.

April 5, 2023: RHP Justin Verlander received improved MRI results, JV, who began the season on the injured list due to a strained teres major muscle on his right side, underwent a follow-up MRI that revealed "reduced inflammation," according to a team statement. 

Feb 14, 2024: Verlander said he felt some discomfort in his shoulder when he started playing catch and had to shut down his throwing program for a while. 

March 3, 2024: Verlander, who showed up at camp two weeks behind because of a shoulder issue, will throw another bullpen swssion. Verlander ramped up the intensity on his bullpen work and has responded well so far. If the bullpen goes well, Verlander could start throwing a live batting practice session soon thereafter. The Astros have not ruled out Verlander for Opening Day. 

April1-19, 2024: Verlander began the season on the IL with a shoulder issue.

March 9, 2024: Verlander, who will start the season on the injured list, will throw a light side session manager Joe Espada said, adding that Verlander’s bullpen went “really well” and that Verlander was “super excited; touched almost 92 [mph]." Verlander reported to camp two weeks behind schedule because of a shoulder issue and has been limited to throwing regular bullpen sessions at Astros camp in the past couple of weeks. The Astros made the decision to put Verlander on the IL because there wasn't enough time to get himself fully ready for the start of the season.

June 16-Aug 21, 2024: The Astros placed RHP Justin Verlander on the 15-day IL due to neck discomfort,

July 9, 2024: The Astros want to make sure Verlander is "100 percent healthy" before activating him, which means the right-hander is unlikely to return until after the All-Star break.

Verlander said that he is playing catch at least every other day. He was unable to give a solid timetable for his return.

"It really just depends on each step, so if it continues to progress the way I would like, hopefully it’s not too long … could be very soon, could be a few weeks,” Verlander said.

"Once he’s able to feel like he’s strong, we’ll ramp up the throwing program [and] the intensity of the throwing program. Probably getting close to get him on the mound, but we’ll see. We’ll see how JV feels,” manager Joe Espada said.

July 14, 2024:  Verlander threw a light bullpen session. Manager Joe Espada said that Verlander, who hasn't pitched since June 9 because of "neck discomfort," threw 25 pitches.

"He looks really good,” Espada said. The current plan is for Verlander to throw another bullpen session in the upcoming days.

July 27, 2024: Verlander threw 50-plus pitches in the bullpen at Minute Maid Park prior to the game against the Dodgers. His next step will be getting on the mound on the field at Minute Maid Park with hitters standing in the batter's box, which will happen sometime next week. 

July 30, 2024: Verlander was seen throwing off the mound before the game against the Pirates. Verlander threw “between 27 to 30 pitches”, per manager Joe Espada. Espada added that Verlander’s velocity is up to 94 mph.

“[I] felt good,” Verlander said. “Great step forward. I threw all of my pitches, so all I could ask for.”

May 22-June 18, 2025: Verlander was placed on the 15-day injured list due to a right pectoral injury.