Tigers Bring Back Justin Verlander on One-Year Deal

Verlander’s best days are behind him. The future Hall of Famer turns 43 on Feb. 20 and might not have many innings left in his arm. But, no matter how the 2026 season plays out, seeing Verlander in the old English D trotting out to the mound in front of a packed Comerica Park will be a special moment.

What It Means for the Tigers

The move is more than just a nostalgic trick. We see rebuilding teams bring back legends in hopes of pushing attendance past 10,000 per game, but this is different. Despite his age, Verlander showed last season that he has more to offer than a farewell tour.

After injuries cut short his 2024 season, Verlander landed in San Francisco and started 29 games, logged 152 innings, and posted a 3.85 ERA, 3.85 FIP, and 8.11 K/9. The velocity has pumped it’s breaks to around 94 mph, but the savvy vet can still work through a lineup with an increased usage of his secondaries and a crafty pitch mitch to keep batters off balance.

There’s enough stuff left in his arm to still get a whiff when he needs it. Last season, Verlander registered a 25% whiff rate or higher on every offering besides his fastball, something he had not done since 2019.

I think we all know what to expect from the veteran, but the signing indicates more than what’s on the surface. Unfortunately, this likely means the Reese Olson injury from last season, which had been reported as still lingering, is a bigger issue than we initially realized.

Olson is one of the brighter arms in the Tigers organization, but injury shut down his 2024 and 2025 seasons. Little was reported about the injury until roughly a week ago, and now the Verlander deal tells us Olson could miss significant time.

We also get a better understanding of how the Tigers view Drew Anderson, who they signed early this offseason to a one-year, $7 million deal. I imagine he is destined for a bulk role out of the bullpen and not a traditional rotation slot.

Troy Melton, who many viewed as the preferred fifth starter, is likely to begin in Triple-A Toledo. I have been saying all offseason that Melton should be viewed as developing rotation depth starting in the minors as a way to manage his innings. I still see this as the route despite a role in the bullpen potentially being open.

I’m not sure if Verlander will be in the rotation all season long. His age and injury history give me worries, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. The Tigers are showing they were not going to settle with getting by from the fifth spot and instead wanted to beef up for (at the very least) the beginning of the season until Olson returns.

Another Win for the Front Office

When I wrote about the Framber Valdez I gave the front office the praise they rightfully deserved. I also mentioned how quickly they could lose this new found confidence if they turned around and traded Tarik Skubal. Well, they didn’t move Skubal and at this point I doubt they do.

Adding Verlander is another big win for the front office. Yes, bringing back a franchise legend is always a cheat code to win fans over, but this signing is more than that. Instead of relying on younger arms or a KBO signing to fill the Olson innings they went out and signed a legitimate arm that can give them competitive innings.

Ownership has been labeled as cheap or unserious at times over the past two seasons. Those titles can now be washed away, at least for the time being. The investment into the team this winter is a serious amount of cash regardless of the market they are in.

They could have elected to build depth through minor league signings only. However, by signing proven veterans they have pushed everyone down a spot and now have used minor league options on major league quality talent to fill depth roles. A move we have seen top teams, such as the Dodgers, make.

With this being the likely last season of Skubal, outside of an extension, what more could you ask for? Could the offense have used an improvement? Yes. But, the free agent market was not strong and the Tigers have two top 10 prospects on the verge of debuting. They didn’t see a fit and pivoted to bolstering the pitching staff to a point where they are in the mix for one of the best rotations in baseball.

Final Thoughts

Verlander represents some of the best memories of Tigers baseball over the past two decades. Postseason success, no-hitters, and games that are cemented into your Tigers fandom. He also represents the turn from that era into a stretch of horrible baseball we all wish we could forget.

Now, like a cheesy mid-budget Hollywood movie, the storybook ending has a chance to happen. The return from a previous era hero to help lift the next era to the top. An opportunity to complete what never happened.

A chance to go out as a Tiger, as the baseball gods intended.