Right-hander Justin Verlander’s plan to come off the injured list and start for the Detroit Tigers on Sunday has been derailed by a new health issue as he strained his left hamstring during a bullpen session on Wednesday.
Verlander, 43, made only one appearance in his return to the Tigers this season before he went on the 15-day injured list on April 4 with left hip inflammation. The three-time Cy Young Award was moved to the 60-day IL and ready to be activated until the new injury occurred during a scheduled session in Houston.
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch had planned to start Verlander (0-1, 12.27 ERA) against the Chicago White Sox — which would have marked his first appearance for the Tigers in Detroit since Aug. 20, 2017 — but declared the new timetable for his return is weeks away.
“This is not a matter of days,” Hinch told reporters on Friday. “It’s a matter of weeks. We’re going to need a full rehab process to get him back to throwing again. Obviously, frustrating news for him and for us, given the excitement that was building around his start on Sunday.”
Verlander, the oldest active player in the major leagues, agreed the news is frustrating.
“My hip actually feels fairly good,” Verlander told reporters on Friday. “All of a sudden, my hamstring was bugging me and I had to cut my bullpen short. Any time I’m not able to get my work in, it means something’s definitely off, so we decided to get it looked at, and there’s a strain.
“Just really unfortunate, man. It just sucks. I don’t know how else to say it.”
A nine-time All-Star, two-time World Series champion and 2011 American League MVP, Verlander owns a 266-159 record with a 3.33 ERA and 3,554 strikeouts in 556 career starts with four teams since 2005.
“Glass half full, I get back to throwing and this thing heals up, and it’s like, ‘Oh, wow, this was something that also was kind of lingering, and now I’m better than I was before,'” Verlander said. “But it still doesn’t take the sting away from being tantalizingly close to finally being back on the mound here at home and having it pulled out from under me.”
He signed a one-year, $13 million contract to return to Detroit, where he played from 2005 until being traded to the Houston Astros at the 2017 trade deadline. While the year has not gone as planned, Verlander said he wants to try “to give everything until the season’s over.”
Verlander then will address his future and consider his health and his family among factors going into the decision.
“There’s a lot of things that are also going on in my life that are a draw away from the game,” Verlander said. “But I’ve always said I want to play until the wheels fall off. I don’t know, maybe they are falling off. I hope not.”
