According to Jon Heyman, the Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros are discussing a deal that could potentially send Justin Verlander out of the Motor City.
Tigers and astros discussing deal that could send justin verlander to houston, though contract makes deal toughhttps://t.co/qxmRI1UYf9
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) August 15, 2017
From FanRag Sports:
Though the two sides continue to discuss a deal, completing one won’t be easy; sources say a finalized deal remains a “long shot.”
Verlander, 34, is still due to make $28 million in both 2018 and 2019, and has a $22 million option for 2020 that kicks in based on his 2019 performance (a top-5 Cy Young finish triggers the option). While Detroit is willing to pay some of that money depending on the return, said return would have to be good enough to convince Detroit to do so while also parting ways with an iconic player. Between the money remaining and figuring out the prospects Detroit would receive in return, a decent gap is still believed to exist in talks between the two sides.
UPDATE:
Update on verlander,teams talked as recently as last week. But sources say they haven't spoken for a few days and Hou and det r still apart
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) August 15, 2017
There is no question about it that the Astros, who still have a commanding lead in the American League West, need a starting pitcher in the worst way. Since the All-Star break, Houston has one of the worst team ERAs in Major League Baseball and even players on the team have talked about the team’s need for another starting pitcher.
Since the All-Star break, Verlander has been absolutely dominant as he has gone 3-1 with a 2.01 ERA in six starts. Even more impressive is that he has held opposing hitters to a microscopic .179 batting average.
Whether or not the Astros and Tigers can reach an agreement still seems like a bit of a pipe dream, but when a team becomes desperate, funny things can happen.
The Astros are certainly becoming more and more desperate as the days go by.
