Justin Verlander
From BR Bullpen
Justin Brooks Verlander
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 5", Weight 200 lb.
- School Old Dominion University
- High School Goochland High School
- Debut July 4, 2005
- Born February 20, 1983 in Manakin-Sabot, VA USA
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[edit] Biographical Information
Justin Verlander was chosen second overall in the 2004 amateur draft and became one of baseball's best young pitchers in first full year in the majors.
[edit] Amateur career
Verlander had been a high school prospect, throwing as high as 94 mph, before illness limited his performance as a senior and scared some scouts off. Justin went on to Old Dominion University, where he went 7-6 with a 1.90 ERA as a freshman. He was named the Colonial Athletic Association Freshman of the Year and led the CAA in ERA. His 137 Ks in 114 innings were second in the association to Whitt Farr, one of the two starters to beat Verlander out for a spot on the All-Conference squad. He was named a Freshman All-American by Baseball America, joining Philip Humber and Huston Street. He was sixth in NCAA Division I in strikeouts and 11th in ERA. Verlander honed his skills prior to enterring the MLB Amateur Draft pitching Summer Collegiate Baseball for the Wilson Tobs of the Coastal Plain League. He went 1-4 with a 2.78 ERA but struck out 54 in 40 1/3 innings and allowed 22 hits (albeit with 26 walks). Baseball America rated him as the top prospect in the league that year.
In 2003, Justin fell to 7-6, 2.40, though he led the CAA with 139 K in 116 IP. He made the All-Conference team and was 8th in the nation in strikeouts. As a junior, Verlander was 7-6 for the third straight year, this time with a 3.49 ERA. His strikeout rate got even better as he sat down 151 batters on strikes in 106 innings. He again was an All-Conference pick, was fifth nationally in Ks (between Humber and Wade Townsend) and third in K/9 (behind Jered Weaver and Tim Lincecum).
[edit] Contract negotiations
Verlander was picked after only Matt Bush in the 2004 draft, selected by the Detroit Tigers. Negotiations were rough and Detroit eventually gave up on signing him. Bypassing agent Mike Milchin, Justin's father Richard, a former union rep for the Communication Workers of America, contacted Detroit to handle the negotiations himself. The team praised Richard's work in enabling them to work out a contract for a $3.12 million signing bonus, a guarantee of $4.5 million and a maximum value of $5.6 million.
[edit] Minor league career
Verlander spent one year in the minor leagues and was named Detroit's minor league player of the year. Throwing in the high 90s and using a sharp curveball, Justin was 9-2 with a 1.67 ERA for the Lakeland Tigers. He struck out 104 in 86 IP while walking only 19 in his debut at hig hclass A. Moving up to the AA Erie SeaWolves, he went 2-0 with a 0.28 ERA in seven starts, allowing only one run in 32 2/3 IP, giving up just 11 hits, 7 walks and striking out 32. Lefties hit .130 against him and right-handers .082. Baseball America rated him the #2 prospect in the Florida State League after Andy LaRoche and ahead of Lastings Milledge. They also rated him as being the top pitching prospect in the league, having the best control, best fastball and best breaking ball. His 1.29 ERA was clearly the lowest in the minor leagues, .73 lower than Ray Liotta. In the 2005 Futures Game, Verlander started for the USA and threw one scoreless inning in a 4-0 loss. He finished the year in Detroit, going 0-2 with a 7.15 ERA in two starts before being shut down for the year with a tired arm.
[edit] A great rookie year
As a rookie with the 2006 Tigers, Verlander was a key part of the club's improvement and trip to the 2006 World Series. He regularly hit 100 mph on the radar guns that year. He went 17-9 with a 3.63 ERA (124 ERA+), 7th in the 2006 AL in wins and ERA and 5th in ERA+. This outstanding performance earned him the American League Rookie of the Year Award after the season. He had a 5.06 ERA in his lone start in the Division Series, becoming the second rookie to start for Detroit in the postseason, 98 years after Ed Summers was the first. He then gave up 3 runs in 5 1/3 innings in a Game Two victory against the Oakland Athletics in the ALCS, then lost Game One of the World Series to another rookie, Anthony Reyes of the St. Louis Cardinals, the first time two rookies had faced off in game one of a World Series. Down 3 games to 1, Detroit went with Verlander again in Game Five to try to remain alive, but he suffered another defeat to bring Detroit's World Series hopes to an end.
On June 12, Tigers, Verlander threw the second no-hitter of the season. It was the first no-hitter by a Detroit Tigers hurler since Jack Morris in 1984. Verlander fanned 12 Brewers in the first no-hitter at Comerica Park. He walked four and was aided by good defense by Magglio Ordonez to rob Corey Hart in the 7th. Amazingly, he was hitting 102 mph on the radar gun in the 9th inning. It was the sixth no-hitter in Tigers history.
Sources include 2003-2006 Baseball Almanacs, 2002 Wilson Tobs stats
[edit] Notable Achievements
- 2006 AL Rookie of the Year Award
- 2006 Topps All-Star Rookie Team
- AL All-Star (2007)
- AL Winning Percentage Leader (2007)
- 15 Wins Seasons: 2 (2006 & 2007)
- 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 1 (2007)
| AL Rookie of the Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 2006 | 2007 |
| Huston Street | Justin Verlander | Dustin Pedroia |
