When Justin Verlander walked into the Detroit Tigers media room on Wednesday, July 8, to explain his decision to retire, another starting pitcher accompanied him.
Tigers ace and two-time defending American League Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal strolled in alongside Verlander. Skubal walked to the back of the room and sat in front of a row of television cameras so he could listen to one of the best pitchers of the 21st century detail the decision to end a historic career after the 2026 season.
“I think it is just important to respect the game,” Skubal said, one day after picking up a win on the mound over the Athletics. “He’s been one of the game’s best pitchers. Ever. And I know that decision is tough for him and you kind of want to support him and let him know that you have his back.”
Verlander, a three-time AL Cy Young winner and the current active leader in wins, strikeouts and innings pitched, detailed how 2026 has been a trying year for him. After re-signing with the Tigers on a one-year, $13 million deal, Verlander only made one start before going to the injured list.
As he got close to a return, the 43-year-old was sidelined again with a different ailment.
“A two or three-week thing turned into a couple-month-long thing and then right when I was about to get back, something else happens,” Verlander said. “I feel like I am plugging the holes in the boat.”
Skubal not only wanted to show support for his teammate, but also study another moment of a career bound for Cooperstown.
“There is a ton of knowledge to take away from how he speaks, what he says and how he goes about his business,” Skubal said. “Just being there was all of those things kind of put together.”
Skubal has used his newfound proximity as a teammate and locker neighbor of Verlander to learn more about the game and art of pitching.
Skubal and Verlander can often be found sitting at opposite ends of a chessboard inside the clubhouse as some of those conversations occur.
“It’s always fun competing against him in that,” Skubal said. “You can kind of see him start to lock in on that stuff. It has been fun to see that. He has been great for everybody in the clubhouse, including me.”
The injuries have forced Verlander to spend more time on his own recovery rather than with teammates as he would have liked. But Verlander is still trying to spread his knowledge when possible with a focus on a return to help himself.
He still envisions himself pitching for the Tigers down the stretch of the 2026 season as the team tries to climb out of a deep hole and reach the postseason for a third straight year.
“I came back here with the intention of being a part of a great run with a playoff-caliber team and hopefully do something special,” Verlander said. “That has not really changed.”
A legacy of longevity, competitive fire
Another veteran arm in the Tigers clubhouse has long marveled by Verlander’s endurance. Whether it was in a single afternoon where Verlander would pace himself early before hitting the upper 90s in the eighth or ninth innings, or winning the 2022 Cy Young with a 1.75 ERA as a 39-year-old coming off a full season away due to injury.
Reliever Kenley Jansen, who ranks third all-time in saves in MLB history, has always marveled at Verlander’s workhorse abilities as a fellow competitor and now teammate.
“It is amazing to see what he did,” Jansen said. “He would start games in the low 90s and then finish in the high 90s in the eighth or ninth. I am happy for him. It is a bummer that he got hurt this year.”
Verlander’s ability to shoulder the team’s load every five days without an issue was a defining characteristic of his career, along with a crisp fastball-curveball-slider combination.
Verlander is one of the last pitchers from a different era of baseball. When he debuted, starters were expected to go deep into games and make as many starts as possible.
As the sport has trended toward quality over quantity, it has made Verlander’s counting numbers stand out against some of the greats that have come up in recent years, such as Skubal, since he could provide both.
“As a starting pitcher, you take pride in eating innings and throwing a ton,” Skubal said. “… I think innings are so valuable and organizations don’t value it as much. They probably want quality over quantity. The old school in me, I want quantity.”
Verlander’s drive to win will always be the defining quality in manager A.J. Hinch’s mind. Verlander joined Hinch with the Houston Astros in 2017 after the Tigers traded him to kickstart a years-long rebuild.
Verlander quickly made himself at home in Houston, helping the Astros win the 2017 World Series. Verlander had some of his best years as an Astro, winning two of his three Cy Youngs and both World Series rings.
“When I first crossed paths with Justin, we had our World Series aspirations,” Hinch said. “And he delivered. So, he helped elevate a franchise that hadn’t been on that stage in a long time.”
But before Hinch got too far into a rabbit hole of Verlander nostalgia, the Tigers manager reminded everyone that Verlander still has potential innings in that right arm before it is officially over.
“I can’t wait to get him back on the mound and have him pitching for us,” Hinch said.
Contact Jared Ramsey at jramsey@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: What Justin Verlander means to Tigers ace Tarik Skubal
