Justin

Verlander

In a social media post, Verlander, who was given a legacy spot in this year’s All-Star game, said that he always wanted “the game to tell [him] when it was time” to retire and “over the least several months, [he] realized that the time has come. Verlander has pitched just 3 2/3 innings this season while dealing with hip and hamstring issues. The 43-year-old currently has a 3.33 career ERA and 266 wins in 556 MLB starts. He will look to add to those numbers down the stretch for the Tigers this season before calling it a career.

First it was going to be Saturday, then it was going to be Sunday, and now it’s not going to happen at all. Verlander remains on the 60-day injured list, but the 43-year-old is finding it hard to get healthy enough to get back on the mound and this latest setback will likely put him out for a few more weeks. The Tigers will likely have Keider Montero start Sunday’s game.

Verlander will make his return to Detroit’s rotation after missing 11 weeks due to a hip issue. It’ll be Keider Montero moving to the bullpen to make room. The 43-year-old future Hall of Famer threw a 66-pitch simulated game at Daikin Park on Monday and shouldn’t have any workload restrictions in his return from the injured list. It’ll be his first start at Comerica Park in a Tigers uniform since 2017.

Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press speculates that Verlander is healthy but the Tigers don’t seem to think he’s ready to pitch in the majors from a performance standpoint, which is why he didn’t take the ball for Monday’s series opener against the Astros. There’s a chance the club decides he’s ready later this week, especially since Troy Melton is now dealing with a back issue that throws his availability into question.

Verlander continues to make strides toward a return to the Tigers’ rotation. If all goes well with Monday’s outing, there’s a chance that he could return for next weekend’s series against the White Sox. It’s unclear if the Tigers plan to go to a six-man rotation or if they’ll work out a piggyback situation with a pair of their starters upon Verlander’s return.

Flaherty has been diagnosed with a strain involving the tendons on the outside of the left lower leg and ankle. It’s unclear how much time he’s going to miss given the nature of the injury. The 30-year-old made an early exit from Friday’s start against the Guardians. No word yet regarding how the Tigers will fill his rotation spot, but it figures to involve Justin Verlander’s return from the injured list.

Verlander struck out three and issued a pair of walks. He gave up only five hits, but four of them wound up leaving the yard. The encouraging news here is that he averaged 92.9 mph on his fastball, topping out at 95.5 mph, and threw 53 of 86 pitches for strikes in his likely final rehab outing. The 43-year-old veteran has been out since early April due to a hip issue. He’ll likely rejoin Detroit’s rotation at some point early next week.

Verlander looked sharp in his first rehab outing, firing five shutout innings and sustaining his velocity over 64 pitches. If all goes well, this will be his final tune-up before making his triumphant return to the Tigers’ rotation. With Casey Mize and Tarik Skubal also expected to rejoin the Tigers’ rotation in the next week or so, the club will have some major decisions to make on how to structure their rotation. It’s possible that they move to a six-man rotation for a couple of turns and/or use a piggyback situation with a couple of their starters.

Verlander scattered four hits and averaged 93.5 mph on his fastball during his latest rehab outing. The really encouraging sign here is that he was able to sustain his velocity through the 64-pitch outing. The 43-year-old future Hall of Famer figures to rejoin Detroit’s rotation this weekend to take the ball against the Mariners at Comerica Park. He’s been on the shelf recovering from a hip impingement since early April.

The 43-year-old right-hander has taken a long time to recover from a hip impingement that has sidelined him since early April. He’s finally making tangible strides toward a return though and it’s possible that if Tuesday’s start goes well that he could be cleared to rejoin the Tigers’ rotation.