Justin Verlander Will Retire After 2026 MLB Season; Won 2 World Series, 3 AL Cy Youngs, 1 AL MVP

Justin Verlander's Hall-of-Fame career will come to an end after 21 seasons with four different teams.

The three-time AL Cy Young winner announced his decision to retire after the season on Wednesday.

This news came after Verlander was named to the 2026 MLB All-Star Game as a "Legend Pick":

Verlander has made one start in his second stint with the Tigers, allowing five runs on six hits in 3.2 innings. He is currently on the injured list with hip and hamstring injuries.

There was some uncertainty after 2024 about whether or not Verlander would continue his storied career. He finished last season with a career-worst 5.48 ERA in 17 starts for the Houston Astros and had two different stints on the injured list.

After his final home start of the regular season on Sept. 20, Verlander admitted he probably came back too soon from a neck injury that kept him on the IL for more than two months in the middle of the season.

"I did have doctors say it would probably take a little longer [to recover]," he said. "I want to be here for this team. … I've pitched through a lot of stuff in my career. Obviously, I'm not saying I'm not going to continue to pitch, but it's been quite difficult. [The neck] hasn't hurt. Obviously, timing stuff is just not right."

The San Francisco Giants decided to take a bet on Verlander rebounding. He signed a one-year, $15 million contract.

Verlander previously hinted he wanted to keep playing long enough to win 300 games, but a rough 2024 really made it difficult to see him reaching that goal. The 43-year-old currently has 266 career victories.

Verlander was the No. 2 pick in the 2004 MLB draft by the Detroit Tigers. He made his big-league debut in July 2005, but only made two starts before being sent back down to the minors.

After making the Tigers' rotation out of spring training in 2006, Verlander never looked back. He won AL Rookie of the Year and finished seventh in Cy Young voting to help Detroit reach the World Series for the first time since 1984.

The 2011 season was arguably the peak of Verlander's career. He went 24-5 with a 2.40 ERA and 250 strikeouts in 251 innings to win the AL Cy Young and MVP awards. He is just one of 11 pitchers in MLB history to win both awards in the same season.

As the Tigers struggled to build successful teams in the second half of the decade, Verlander was eventually traded to the Astros prior to the waiver deadline on Aug. 31, 2017. He helped provide a spark down the stretch and in the postseason for the club.

Verlander went 4-1 with a 2.21 ERA in 36.2 innings over six appearances to help Houston win its first-ever World Series title. He followed that up by posting a 2.55 ERA and 590 strikeouts in 437 innings over the next two seasons combined, winning the AL Cy Young in 2019.

After making just one start during the shortened 2020 season, Verlander had Tommy John surgery that kept him out for the entire 2021 campaign. He won his third and final Cy Young award in 2022 after putting up a 1.75 ERA in 175 innings.

The New York Mets signed Verlander as a free agent as part of their offseason spending spree going into 2023. Things didn't work out for the club in Queens, though he wasn't bad with a 3.15 ERA in 16 starts.

When the Mets decided to sell ahead of the trade deadline, Verlander was traded back to Houston in July 2023. He pitched well with a 3.31 ERA in 11 starts to help get the Astros into the ALCS, but they lost to the Texas Rangers in seven games.

For the entirety of his career, Verlander put together a 266-159 record in 556 starts with a 3.33 ERA in 3,571.1 innings. His 82.3 wins above replacement ranks 24th all-time for pitchers.

There is a spot reserved in Cooperstown for Verlander as soon as he becomes eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame.