Detroit Tigers’ Justin Verlander needs to return soon and eat innings
Over the past half decade, the Detroit Tigers have been considered a threat for a World Series title. They have consistently been in contention for an American League pennant since Justin Verlander became a staple of the rotation in 2007 and Miguel Cabrera came over in 2008 via a trade from the Marlins. It’s fair to say the Tigers have recently been perceived as a contender for a championship run.
Detroit has a deep starting pitching rotation within Major League Baseball. The right-handed Verlander has consistently led the charge and is the driving force behind the pitching staff, reliably throwing over 200 innings per season dating back to 2007. When Verlander was on the mound, you could practically pencil in wins from his starts. Over the past number of years he has been seen leading a duo of apt arms with the Tigers from Doug Fister to Max Scherzer or current star left-hander David Price.
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The Tigers first brought Verlander to the scene in 2005 on America’s birthday, the Fourth of July. Since then, Verlander has nearly done it all. Some of his highest achievements were pitching two no-hitters, six All-Star Game appearances as well as leading the American League three times in strikeouts. His record is 152-89 (.632) through his career with a 3.53 ERA and he is definitely one of the best the game has had to offer in recent memory.
For all the individual accolades, a championship has evaded the Tigers and Verlander since he burst onto the scene. As we begin the 2015 season, the Tigers are facing unfamiliar territory surrounding him. Verlander was scheduled to start the season on the disabled list for the first time in his career with a triceps strain. It would have been his first time on the shelf in over 296 career starts and 1,965 innings pitched. The Tigers have since changed directions with that move.
Hopefully for Tigers fans and management, they can nip Verlander’s injury in the bud. However, if Verlander is out for an extended stint on the disabled list or shut down for the season, the bigger question is what does GM Dave Dombrowski do to address it?
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Price was acquired last season from Tampa Bay to work together with Verlander in the event of Scherzer leaving in 2015. Detroit has always had the safety net of having Verlander available to start their summer. During the season opener versus the Minnesota Twins, Price stepped in and pitched 8.2 innings to land Detroit its first win. Price’s Opening Day start snapped a seven consecutive seasons streak by Verlander and the Tigers. Although, after 2014’s down campaign by the right-hander, it might be safe to assume that even if Verlander was healthy to start this season, Price still would have gotten the nod Monday against the Twins.
Anibal Sanchez, Alfredo Simon and Shane Greene will have to maintain high efficiency levels during Verlander’s absence. Fans can rely on Price to work deep into games and strikeout plenty of hitters. But with a questionable bullpen, the Tigers need Verlander to return to health and approach the 200 IP milestone in bounce-back fashion from 2014.
The American League Central is becoming one of the more competitive divisions in baseball on paper. The Cleveland Indians, Kansas City Royals and Chicago White Sox’s front offices have all put in work this offseason and improved their rosters. Wins are critical even in early April for the Detroit Tigers.