Detroit Tigers trade rumors: Justin Verlander could hit the trade market soon
By Matt Snyder
The Detroit Tigers are expected to field trade offers on Justin Verlander soon, according to a report by Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports.
The Detroit Tigers could be preparing to move on without Justin Verlander. A new report today from Jeff Passan indicates that front offices around the league expect the star pitcher to hit the trade market in the coming weeks.
"Multiple front-office sources told Yahoo Sports they expect Verlander to hit the trade market sometime in the next two weeks. This is more tea-leaf reading than any indication Tigers general manager Al Avila has given in conversations with teams. Still, if the Tigers do punt on 2017 – their 34-42 record is the AL’s second worst – they could begin a rebuild in earnest without a franchise icon."
We heard yesterday that the Tigers themselves thought that Verlander would generate trade interest but didn’t have much indication of what other teams thought of the 34 year old’s chances of hitting the trading block.
It’s still not clear what type of return package Verlander would bring (he’s still owed $28 million per year for two additional seasons and holds a vesting option for a third), but Passan’s article confirms that the Tigers would be seeking more than simple salary relief. They’d want a quality prospect package as well.
Given his large salary and the Tigers’ likely demands in return — to say nothing of Verlander’s full no-trade rights — it still seems rather improbable that a trade could be consummated but the speculation is interesting nonetheless. At the very least we’ve gotten a glimpse into how serious the Tigers are about their impending rebuild.
In the end it’s going to come down to the type of offers the Tigers receive, but it’s pretty clear that they’ll be looking to move more than just the likes of J.D. Martinez and his expiring contract.
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Verlander’s 2017 season has been marred by inconsistency early — he’s amassed a 4.47 ERA on the year — but he’s seen an increase in strikeout rate in the month of June (24% of batters faced) and has posted a solid 3.03 FIP for the month. Another strong start or two could help convince rival teams that last season’s success was not a fluke.