Justin Verlander has a decision to make.
Does the right-hander accept the Houston Astros’ qualifying offer, a one-year deal worth $18.4 million?
Or does the two-time Cy Young Award winner roll the dice coming off Tommy John surgery and test the open market?
The future Hall of Famer has until 5 p.m. ET Wednesday to choose which way to go.
But The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, appearing on MLB Network, has a sense of what Verlander will do.
“I don’t expect him to take the qualifying offer but Justin Verlander is a hot name on the market right now. He is someone that, from what I heard (Tuesday), has a preference to stay with a team that trains in the state of Florida. That’s most likely an East Coast team. And we’ve heard that the Yankees are in, the Blue Jays certainly are in, I believe the Red Sox might be in. So it could come down to one of those three AL East powers. My understanding is that those are the three main teams. I imagine Houston is in as well. That’s his previous team. He’s coming off Tommy John surgery. He’s going to pitch next season at 39, but my goodness, he’s Justin Verlander. ... I don’t know that the Tigers are in as heavily as some of these other teams.”
Rosenthal’s take on the Verlander market syncs up with what The New York Post’s Joel Sherman reported after former New York Mets right-hander Noah Syndergaard agreed to a one-year, $21 million contract Tuesday with the Los Angeles Angels.
Word is that the teams that were in on Syndergaard also have interest in (Justin) Verlander. That includes three AL East clubs — the Yankees, Blue Jays and Red Sox. Toronto and Boston made aggressive offers for Syndergaard. It is not publicly known if the Yanks did.
Rosenthal’s information also is in line with what NJ Advance Media’s Bob Klapisch had to say after news broke of Syndergaard’s deal, as first reported to New York Yankees text insiders:
“I’m told the Yankees were keeping tabs on Thor - he’s a free agent with considerable upside - although there was no chance they would’ve paid that much.
“As much of a setback as Syndergaard’s departure is to the Mets, it increases the focus on the Yankees’ search for a No. 2 starter. (Justin) Verlander is on the radar.
“I’ve already weighed in on him (too damaged, too late pursuing him). But it’s not impossible the Big Verl ends up in the Bronx.”
Verlander missed most of 2020 and all of 2021 while recovering from Tommy John surgery. But the 38-year-old right-hander, if healthy, could reunite with former Astros teammate Gerrit Cole to give the Yankees a dangerous duo atop the starting rotation.
To that end, Verlander held a showcase last week in Florida for 15-to-20 teams, and yes, the Yankees were in attendance.
Sherman reported “Verlander threw about 25 pitches during the workout, clocking in between 94-97 miles per hour. The workout was held at Yankees director of player health and performance Eric Cressey’s facility.”
MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported “Free agent Justin Verlander has reached 95-96 mph in recent bullpen sessions, as Harold Reynolds said (last week) morning on @MLBNetwork. Verlander, who turns 39 before next season, has said he wants to pitch until age 45.”
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Mike Rosenstein may be reached at mrosenstein@njadvancemedia.com.
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