Twenty-one years after making his MLB debut with the Detroit Tigers, Justin Verlander is back where it all began. The oldest active player in MLB reunited with his former team ahead of the 2026 season, signing a one-year, $13 million deal. But this reunion is beginning to look like the final chapter of an illustrious career. The veteran starter is now set to draw the curtain on his playing days in Detroit, the same franchise that gave him his first shot back in 2005.
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The Tigers had already announced plans to celebrate Verlander one last time, adding another layer to what promises to be a meaningful farewell. Now, the question is no longer whether Detroit will honor its longtime star, but when. The team’s manager has offered a hint at when that final celebration could take place.
“In pencil, we’re aiming for that last weekend, which we know is going to be an emotional, important weekend for him,” A.J. Hinch told MLB.com on Sunday. “But also, if we can get him in that series, roughly on that Saturday, that would be at that seven-day cadence.”
The three-time AL Cy Young Award winner recorded just one start this season, and that too in Arizona. He threw 3.2 innings on March 30 against the Diamondbacks, allowing 5 runs on 6 hits and 2 walks. Since then, Verlander has been on the injured list with left-hip inflammation. He was supposed to return to the Tigers’ rotation in June, but a left hamstring strain set him back.
Verlander has not pitched at Comerica Park as part of the Tigers since August 20, 2017. Back then, the Tigers traded him to the Houston Astros eleven days later. He won his last two Cy Young Awards with the Astros (2.58 ERA in 2019 and 1.75 ERA in 2022). Verlander also won the World Series ring twice with the Astros in 2017 and 2022.
Apart from short stints with the San Francisco Giants and the New York Mets, Verlander has split his two-decade-long career between the Tigers and the Astros. Across 556 career games, he logged a 3.33 ERA with 26 complete games, 3,554 strikeouts, and a 266-159 record.
The Tigers are aiming to celebrate his legacy with one last start at Comerica Park. Though official confirmation is pending, the Tigers have targeted September 26, the next-to-last game of the regular season, to have Verlander on the mound.
Earlier this month, the Tigers announced they would honor the veteran starter during the ‘Justin Verlander Career Celebration’ scheduled for September 25 and 26.
The club has planned Verlander’s schedule accordingly. He will throw two bullpen sessions this week and a simulated game next weekend in Chicago. As the Tigers run on limited time, they are skipping a rehab start and relying on simulated games. If Verlander does not have any setbacks, Comerica Park will celebrate him during the final weekend of the season.
“Obviously we’re going to expedite this thing,” Verlander said, per MLB.com. “We’re trying to be smart and balance what I need to do to prove that I can go out there and get to 100 percent with not hurting it.”
With Verlander’s latest stint with the Tigers potentially limited to only two starts, the veteran expressed his disappointment with the season.
Justin Verlander is disappointed with current season
Justin Verlander is tied to two of the most successful seasons in Detroit Tigers history. He helped the Tigers reach the World Series in 2006 and then again in 2012. However, the Tigers lost both against the St. Louis Cardinals and the San Francisco Giants, respectively. Verlander holds a 183-115 record with a 3.51 ERA across 381 games for the Tigers.
However, roadblocked by injuries, the future Hall of Famer’s current season has been a lackluster one. Verlander has revealed how fans have inspired him not to give up amid the disappointment.
“Obviously, I’m quite disappointed with how this season’s gone,” Verlander said, per MLB.com. “But I’ve heard a lot of fans here at home and in different cities that go, ‘JV, come on, just give us one more. I’d love to see you.’
“That’s been inspiring. It would be really easy to give up, but it’s not what got me to this point in my career, and it’s just not who I am.”
From no-hitters (vs. the Brewers in 2007 and the Blue Jays in 2011) to strikeout milestones (2,000 in 2016), Verlander has given the Tigers as much as he has received. So, if the Tigers put a rusty Verlander on the mound to honor him, a loss carries little consequence for the franchise.
The Tigers are 70-79 and buried in the AL Wild Card chase. A loss in the second-to-last game of a 162-game-long season will not do them much harm, with postseason contention out of reach.