Sample Player Profile Page

VERLANDER, JUSTIN


	Nickname:	N/A	Position:	P
	Home:	Goochland, Virginia	Team:	TIGERS
	Height:	6' 5"	Bats:	R
	Weight:	200	Throws:	R
	DOB:	2/20/1983	Agent:	Mike Milchin/SFX
	Birth City:	Manakin-Sabot, Virginia	Draft:	Tigers #1 - 2004 - Out of Old Dominion Univ.
	Uniform #:	35		Tigers #1 - 2004 - Out of Old Dominion Univ.

YR	LEA	TEAM	SAL(K)	G	IP	H	SO	BB	GS	CG	SHO	SV	W	L	OBA	ERA
2005	FSL	LAKELAND		13	86	70	104	19	13	2	0	0	9	2		1.67
2005	EL	ERIE		7	33	11	32	7	7	0	0	0	2	0		0.28
2005	AL	TIGERS	$316.00	2	11	15	7	5	2	0	0	0	0	2		7.15
2006	AL	TIGERS		30	186	187	124	60	30	1	1	0	17	9	0.266	3.63
2007	AL	TIGERS	$1,030.00	32	201.2	181	183	67	32	1	1	0	18	6	0.233	3.66
2008	AL	TIGERS	$1,130.00	33	201	195	163	87	33	1	0	0	11	17	0.254	4.84
2009	AL	TIGERS	$3,675.00	35	240	219	269	63	35	3	1	0	19	9	0.243	3.45
2010	AL	TIGERS	$6,850.00	28	184.1	163	172	66	28	2	0	0	14	8	0.237	3.61

PERSONAL:
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 (away) mound, and parents got so mad because I used to his 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." Verlander has always had an incredible right arm. "When he was 9 years old, we were throwing rocks into a pond," his father Richard recalls. "I picked up one and threw it as far as I could, which was about halfway across. Justin picked up a rock, and he threw it all the way across to the other side."

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) 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 (and the second pick overall in the draft). 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 5-year contract with the Tigers and scout Greg Smith. It was worth around $4.5 million. It included a $3.12 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."

Richard Verlander said Milchin still was his son's agent, but he wouldn't discuss what he thought of the agent's role in the stalled negotiations. Why didn't Verlander's father handle negotiations from the start? "I know I'm too close to the situation," he said. "Generally a doctor's patients aren't his own family." 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.

Verlander was named the 2006 American League Rookie of the Year and the American League Outstanding Rookie. 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 Verlander'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 (Va.) High School 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 earlier Monday. 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 no-hitter didn't go unnoticed in the nation's capital. It was even watched by the Commander-in-Chief. "President George W. Bush hosted Verlander in the White House's Oval Office on Wednesday afternoon. 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.' "From there, it had been arranged for him to meet with the President in his office. "'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 ot 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 face Frank (Thomas) for the first time, it was a full-circle moment. I stepped off the emound 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." TRANSACTION REPORT

June 2004: The Tigers drafted Verlander in the first round, out of Old Dominion University. October 22, 2004: Verlander signed a 5-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 ($4.15 million) filed for salary arbitration. On February 3, 2009, Justin and the Tigers agreed on a one-year, $3.675 million, avoiding arbitration. February 3, 2010: Verlander signed a 5-year, $80 million contract with the Tigers.

PITCHING:
Justin has a 94-101 mph, four-seam FASTBALL that runs in on righthanded hitters, a sinking, two-seamer in the 91-96 mph range, a powerful knee-buckling hammer CURVEBALL that has late depth, a SLIDER that has good, late bite, and a CIRCLE-CHANGEUP with late fading and sinking action. On some nights, that curve has suh excellent depth and late biting action low in the strike zone that you can watch hitter's knees literally buckle. 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."	The lean, lithe and lanky Justin has a natural, loose, extremely rapid arm speed. His long arms and legs bring him close to the plate. Hitters say the ball gets on the real quick from his upright delivery. He smoothed out the violent motion he had in college. He threw off a stiff front leg in college that left his low- to mid-90s fastball up in the strike zone and gave him trouble locating a plus curveball. "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. June 12, 2007, Justin threw a no-hitter against the Brewers�he Tigers' first since Jack Morris in 1984. 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.'" Verlander's problematic 2008 season was due to inconsistent command of his fastball. In 2009, Justin tied with C.C. Sabathia (Yankees) and Felix Hernandez (M's) for most wins in the America League (19). And Verlander led the AL in strikeouts with 269 -- 47 more K's than the Royals' Zack Greinke. And, 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 American League starter since Roger Clemens in 1997 with Toronto. BREAKDOWN VS. LEFTIES AND RIGHTIES	In 2005, lefties hit only .175 with no home runs in 171 at-bats in the minor leagues off Verlander. In 2006, the righty throwing Verlander allowed a .279 average with 13 home runs in 340 at-bats vs. lefthanded hitters. Righthanded batters hit .253 with 8 home runs in 363 at-bats. In 2007, Justin held lefthanded batters to a .232 with 13 home runs in 413 at-bats. Righthanded batters hit .234 with 7 homers in 363 at-bats. In 2008, Verlander was equally effective vs. lefty hitters (.254 with 8 homers in 355 at-bats) and righthanded batters (.254 with 10 homers in 414 at-bats). In 2009, Justin allowed lefthanded batters a .248 average with 14 home runs in 505 at-bats, while righthanded hitters hit .237 with 6 homers in 397 at-bats.

As of the start of the 2010 season, Verlander's career record was 65-43 with a 3.92 ERA, having allowed 80 home runs and 797 hits in 840 innings.

FIELDING:
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 (July 10, 2010), Justin picked off two Minnesota Twins.

CAREER INJURY REPORT:
August 2�October 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.

Last Updated 9/4/2010. All contents © 2000 by Player Profiles. All rights reserved.