Future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander and the San Francisco Giants are in agreement on a one-year contract for 2025. The agreement is worth $15 million and pending the outcome of a physical, ESPN reports.
Verlander, who turns 42 in February, will be entering his 20th MLB season. He’s coming off an injury-compromised 2024 campaign for the Houston Astros in which he pitched to a 5.48 ERA in 17 starts and 90 1/3 innings. His start to the 2024 season was delayed by a shoulder injury that turned up late in spring training, and then he missed several weeks starting in the middle of June to persistent neck discomfort.
While steep decline is of course a possibility at Verlander’s age, he does have a recent history of success. In 2023, he put up a 3.22 ERA in 27 combined starts for the New York Mets and Astros. In 2022, he won his third American League Cy Young Award, as he went 18-4 with an MLB-leading 1.75 ERA for Houston. Overall, Verlander over the past three seasons has a 129 ERA+ and an FIP of 3.49 in 427 2/3 innings.
He’ll enter the 2025 season with 262 career wins and a WAR of 81.0, and he’s closing in on 3,500 career strikeouts — a figure just nine other MLB pitchers have reached. Throw in his eight All-Star selections and that aforementioned trio of Cy Youngs, and Verlander stands as perhaps the greatest pitcher of his generation. That will not doubt be reflected when he’s one day elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, surely on the first ballot.
For now, though, Verlander will focus on authoring a renaissance season with a Giants team that’s coming off a second straight losing season and third straight season without a playoff berth. Verlander will be relied upon to stabilize the back of a San Francisco rotation that also includes Logan Webb and Robbie Ray. The Verlander agreement is the second notable offseason addition made by new Giants lead decision-maker Buster Posey. Posey and Giants earlier in the winter signed shortstop Willy Adames to a seven-year, $182 million pact.
The Giants will be the fourth MLB team for which Verlander has pitched, and his third in three seasons.
Read the full article here
