MLB: Tigers do ‘due diligence’ on Justin Verlander training

The Detroit Tigers they make sure to send a scout every time a major league free agent has an exhibition event – Show Case – or training. No matter the level of interest, no matter the odds of signing the player, the Tigers are usually represented. It’s a policy that dates back to Dave Dombrowski’s time as CEO, and has continued under Al Avila.

And so it was that the Tigers had a scout available earlier this week at Cressey Sports Performance in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, observing a familiar face. The Detroit main office knows a lot about Justin verlander, but the Tigers wanted to see what he looks like now as he heads to free agency for the first time in his career:

They certainly weren’t alone. Between 15 and 20 teams were represented in the Verlander showcase. What they saw was a fastball in the mid-90s from a 38-year-old pitcher who underwent Tommy John surgery just over a year ago.

Given those ties, the Tigers have been linked to an interest in Verlander, with speculation that he could go back to his roots and revert to the Old English D. With Spencer Turnbull expected to miss virtually the entire next season and left-hander Matthew Boyd will miss at least the beginning of it, Detroit is looking to add two starting pitchers to complement its young trio of Casey Mize, left-hander Tarik Skubal and Matt Manning. .

The Tigers are looking to build on their 77-win season and get back into playoff contention, but they need to strengthen their rotation to get there. With the flexibility of payroll, they have the opportunity to break out of their recent one-year contract cycle to win back candidates.

However, any idea that the Tigers are a natural landing spot for Verlander to resurrect his career while other teams rule him out seems overly optimistic, especially if he’s pitching so hard so soon after elbow surgery.

If Verlander can take advantage of this, he can appeal to teams that are in contention for the World Series right now and looking to add to their rotation for a shove, more than a typical pitcher returning from Tommy John surgery, especially one. who turns 39 in February.

It may interest you: MLB To clear doubts Justin Verlander will pitch in a Show Case

Astros owner Jim Crane told reporters last month that Verlander is seeking “a contract of a certain length.” Houston made a qualifying offer to Verlander last week, so if the Tigers hired him, they would have to give up a pick in next year’s Draft as compensation, either their third-highest pick or next-best option if already. They had done so signed by another free agent who had received a qualified offer.

Rafael Martinez

I am fond of the King of Sports, especially the Boston Red Sox in MLB and in general all of Mexican baseball. This profession has given me the opportunity to cover major events such as the Caribbean Series, LMB All Star, LMP (uninterrupted since 2009), signings of important players. I had the chance to attend the 2013 World Classic in Arizona, USA, albeit as a fan. Apart from this beautiful sport, I love basketball, where I have also narrated games and even an NBA friendly 10 years ago, but I carry baseball in my veins. Bachelor of Communication Sciences from the Autonomous University of Sinaloa (UAS) , from which I graduated in 2011. I was born in Mazatlán, Sinaloa and started in the world of sports journalism in 2004 in the newspaper El Sol de Mazatlán, where I was a baseball columnist and a reporter at the same time. In January 2009 I came to El Debate as a journalist reporter and it was almost six years (in the first stage), until in November 2014 I emigrated to the radio providing my services at Línea Directa-Grupo RSN. My cycle there ended in July 2019 and after a few days, El Debate gave me another opportunity to work and opened the doors for me again. That is how I came to Al Bat, where I have been since 2019 as a web journalist.

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