Comerica Park, Detroit, MI — September 26, 2026
Justin Verlander made his final start for the Detroit Tigers today after being activated from the injured list. After a 21-year Major League Baseball career, the three-time American League Cy Young Award winner (2011, 2019, 2022) ended his career with the team he had so much success with.
After making his debut with Detroit on July 4, 2005, he won the AL Rookie of the Year in 2006. When he won his first Cy Young in 2011, he was also named the league MVP. One of only 11 pitchers in MLB history to accomplish the feat. Don Newcombe (1956), Sandy Koufax (1963), Bob Gibson (1968), Denny McLain (1968), Vida Blue (1971), Rollie Fingers (1981), Willie Hernández (1984), Roger Clemens (1986), Dennis Eckersley (1992), Justin Verlander (2011), and Clayton Kershaw (2014). Verlander was traded to the Houston Astros in August 2017.
List of Verlander Career Accomplishments
- Two-time World Series Champion: 2017, 2022
- Ten Time All-Star: 2007, 2009–2013, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2026
- Recorded 3,560 strikeouts in 3,576 2/3 innings across 557 starts, ranking eighth in MLB history
- 266 career wins, and second all-time in starts, only Tom Glavine had more, with 682 games started
- Pitched 3 Career No-Hitters: 2007, 2011, and 2019
- One of nine pitchers in MLB history with at least nine 200-strikeout seasons
- In 2022, at the age of 39 Verlander pitched 175 innings and posted a 1.75 ERA, the oldest pitcher with a sub-1.80 ERA
- From 2008-11, he threw 225 pitches of at least 100 mph, just one other starting pitcher had even 30 during that time
Verlander is one of the most decorated pitchers of all-time.
Stats for His Final Start
- Innings Pitched: 5.1
- Pitches Thrown: 91
- Hits Allowed: 5
- Runs Allowed: 2
- Earned Runs: 2
- Walks: 1
- Strikeouts: 6
- Home Runs Allowed: 2
The Tigers saved Verlander from a loss in his final start when Rookie Eduardo Valencia hit a dramatic, two-run walk-off homer oat the expense of Pirates reliever Mason Montgomery with two outs in the 9th to secure the 4-3 victory.
When Verlander was removed from the game his daughter Genevieve ran to the mound and hugged her father as he sobbed. His wife Kate Upton and baby son Bellamy joined to walk him to the dugout.
