Tigers Fans Don't Need to See Justin Verlander Make One More Start

There have been some rumblings that Justin Verlander could be working toward one final start for the Detroit Tigers before the 2026 season comes to an end.

But there is one question that needs to be asked:

Why would Tigers fans even want to see it?

The Tigers signed Verlander to a massive contract in the offseason with the expectation that the future Hall of Famer would make 20 or more starts for Detroit.

Instead, everything fell apart almost immediately.

After making just one start in March, Verlander was shut down with an injury that became apparent following that outing. He lasted just 3.2 innings, allowing five runs, and simply did not look like the Justin Verlander Tigers fans had grown accustomed to watching.

Nobody expected Verlander to suddenly turn back the clock to 2012 and become the dominant ace who once ruled the American League.

But there was reason for optimism.

Verlander's 2024 season with the Houston Astros was rough, but his 2025 season with the San Francisco Giants showed there was still something left in the tank. He made 11 starts and posted a 3.85 ERA, proving that, even in his 40s, he could still compete at the highest level.

Then came the spring.

Then came those 3.2 innings.

And suddenly, the idea of Verlander's return to Detroit began looking much different.

Now, with only three weeks remaining in the 2026 season, there is apparently still some hope that Verlander can get himself healthy enough to make one final start.

But again, why?

Verlander's farewell to baseball effectively happened last year. He announced his retirement after the 2026 season, and even though his time in Detroit this year was essentially nonexistent, he has already received plenty of recognition for his career.

He was even selected to participate in the All-Star festivities despite pitching just 3.2 innings this season.

That is how much respect baseball has for Justin Verlander.

And that is exactly why there is no reason to force one more start.

The last two seasons have shown the inevitable decline of one of the greatest pitchers of his generation. His final season in Houston produced an ERA above 5.00, while his 3.85 ERA last year was his highest mark since 2014.

That's not an indictment of Verlander.

It's baseball.

Father Time eventually wins every battle, even against the greatest players the sport has ever seen.

For Tigers fans, though, there is something bigger at stake here.

We don't need to remember Justin Verlander for 3.2 innings and five runs.

We don't need his final appearance in a Tigers uniform to be an attempt to squeeze one last start out of a pitcher who has already given Detroit nearly everything he has.

And we certainly don't need to watch one of the greatest athletes in Detroit sports history slowly fade away on the mound just because he hasn't quite figured out how to walk away.

Verlander deserves better than that.

So do Tigers fans.

Think about what Verlander represented during his first run in Detroit.

From 2006 through 2016, the Tigers had one of the most talented rosters in franchise history. And at the center of it was Verlander, who became one of the defining athletes of an entire generation of Detroit sports.

He was the ace.

He was the guy you wanted on the mound when everything was on the line.

He won the Cy Young. He won MVP. He threw a no-hitter. He made All-Star teams. He won hundreds of games. He became a World Series champion.

And he became a Detroit sports icon.

That is how Tigers fans should remember Justin Verlander.

Not as a gray-haired, overweight version of himself desperately trying to recreate the past.

Not as a pitcher struggling to get through one final start.

And certainly not as someone who couldn't recognize when it was time to hang up the cleats.

I love Justin Verlander as much as the next Tigers fan.

There is no denying what he meant to this franchise, this city and an entire generation of fans.

But the last thing I want to see is Justin Verlander take the mound one more time simply because he can.

Let him walk away.

Let his final memory be the greatness.

Save the comeback appearances for an alumni game. Let him throw a few innings in a slow-pitch softball game. Let Tigers fans remember the pitcher who dominated baseball rather than the pitcher who was trying to hold on.

Justin Verlander doesn't need one more start to cement his legacy in Detroit.

He's already done more than enough.