The Detroit Tigers’ 2015 season ended in disappointment. Justin Verlander and David Price headlined the rotation while Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez, Ian Kinsler and Yoenis Cespedes led the lineup and a run at the playoffs looked like it was in the cards. It was not to be and Verlander’s regression played a big part in that. This season Verlander is joined by Jordan Zimmermann, but it is upon Verlander’s shoulders that the fate of the Tigers rests.
Verlander failed to reach 30 starts for the first time in his career, managing just 20 starts and fell short of the 200 inning plateau for the first time since 2006. At 32, Verlander has 2,111.1 innings under his belt and his injury-plagued campaign comes just one year after he posted a 4.54 ERA that saw him lead the league in earned runs with 104 and notch just 159 strikeouts in 206 innings. Red flags were everywhere and the problems came to the forefront in 2015.
While Verlander wasn’t awful when he was on the mound most of the time, he was not exactly the player Tigers fans have come to know in recent years. The 3.38 ERA (3.49 FIP) and 1.08 WHIP look good, but that doesn’t tell the whole story.
If the Tigers want to have any hope of competing in 2016 they will need Verlander to get back to being the guy they grew accustomed to from 2006-12. That might be a lot to ask for given the mileage he has compiled along the way, but the Tigers will need him to be at the very least a No. 2 starter.
Whether or not Verlander can return to being a frontline starter is another question. It looks like all of those innings are finally catching up to him, and he might continue to be the pitcher he has been since 2013, a middle rotation-type of starter with the potential to dominate a game here and there. That won’t be good enough for the Tigers if they want to get back to the postseason.
The Tigers’ 2016 hopes rest on Verlander’s right arm. If he can somehow turn back the clock, then the Tigers might be able to compete for a postseason berth. If Verlander continues to struggle on the mound and with his health it could be another long year in Detroit.
