Verlander Aims For Cooperstown
Unlike a lot of players, Justin Verlander has no fear of disclosing that his career goal is to make the Hall of Fame.
Unlike a lot of players, he's got a respectable chance.
Obviously, he'll need to stay healthy, play on competitive teams and pitch superbly deep into his 30s.
But right now he's on a pretty impressive career path.
Verlander's 101st career win came in Detroit's 7-1 victory over Minnesota. It was his 192nd career start.
The game also put him over 200 innings for the fifth straight year.
His eight strikeouts put him past 200 for the third season in a row.
It made him the first to 18 victories this season, and he is one off his career high. He has won between 17 and 19 games each full season in the majors with the exception of an 11-win 2008.
Ten more years of that and he would be knocking at the door of both 300 wins and the Hall of Fame. Verlander is pitching at 28 this year and has the pitch assortment that should age well (well-located high-speed fastball, Grade A curve, very good slider and excellent changeup).
Durability? Verlander exceeded 100 pitches for the 45th start in a row. The streak would be longer except the last time he was under 100 pitches came when manager Jim Leyland wouldn't let him return after a lengthy rain delay.
How many pitchers are throwing harder at the end of a game -- 98-101 mph -- than they are at the start -- 92-94 mph? Verlander routinely does.
Fox Sports Detroit showed a nice stat during Verlander's most recent win. His ERA for innings 1-3 this year is 2.54; his ERA for innings 4-6 is also 2.54; but his ERA from the seventh inning on is 1.62. Who does that?
Verlander does.
Now he's moving into territory occupied by pitchers who have demonstrated excellence over a sustained period of time.
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