Astros GM discusses ‘conversations’ with free-agent ace Justin Verlander

In a recent appearance on ESPN’s “Baseball Tonight” podcast, Astros GM Dana Brown said the club had been in contact with free-agent right-hander Justin Verlander about a possible reunion.  

“We’ve had conversations with his agent [ISE’s Mark Pieper] just to try to feel him out.  I don’t know if there’s been a lot of progress, but we’re having conversations,” Brown said.

Unsurprisingly, it doesn’t sound like either side is quite ready to make a move this relatively early in the offseason.  As Brown noted earlier in the podcast, the Astros’ top priority at the moment is trying to re-sign Alex Bregman.  That high-profile pursuit is taking much of the team’s focus, even if Brown noted that the club is doing its due diligence on other potential moves (such as finding another third baseman) as well.

“If [Verlander] continues to work and he’s healthy, it’s going to be interesting to see where he goes and how much he gets.  But I’m sure there will be a bunch of teams calling the agent,” Brown said.  

This is perhaps reading too much into wording, but Brown’s phrasing almost seemed to imply more of an arm’s length approach, as if the Astros were more curious spectators to Verlander’s market than active participants.

Verlander turns 42 in February, but he made it clear following the season that he wanted to return in 2025, and rebound from an injury-marred 2024 campaign.  The right-hander was limited to 90 1/3 innings due to a pair of injured-list stints prompted by shoulder injury and then neck discomfort.  The latter injury was particularly troublesome, as Verlander missed about 2.5 months due his neck issue and didn’t pitch well after he returned, leaving him feeling like he probably tried to come back too quickly.  The end result was a 5.48 ERA, the highest of Verlander’s career apart from the 7.11 ERA he posted over an 11 1/3-inning sample size in his very first major league season in 2005.

It was just two seasons ago that Verlander won his third AL Cy Young Award, and in 2023, he was still solid with a 3.22 ERA over 162 1/3 innings with the Mets and Astros.  A case can certainly be made that Verlander has more to contribute if healthy, and the righty has already defied Father Time once by delivering that last Cy Young campaigns after a Tommy John surgery cost him virtually all of the 2020 and ’21 seasons.

That said, nobody would be surprised if age and injuries simply caught up to Verlander, and 2023 was really his last hurrah as a productive starting pitcher.  As Brown noted, Verlander’s track record alone will lead to interest from multiple teams, but it’s understandable if the Astros were ready to move on rather than risk being left holding the bag if Verlander declined further.

Framber Valdez, Hunter Brown, Ronel Blanco and Spencer Arrighetti are lined up as the top four of Houston’s rotation, and the in-house candidates for the fifth starter’s role all come with big health-related question marks.  Lance McCullers Jr. has missed the last two seasons due to injuries, Luis Garcia hasn’t pitched since May 2023 due to a Tommy John surgery and a couple of setbacks, J.P. France missed most of 2024 due to shoulder surgery, and Cristian Javier had a TJ surgery last June and isn’t guaranteed to pitch at all in 2025.  Adding a reliable veteran arm to the mix certainly makes sense for Houston, though Verlander might not fit the bill given his own health status.