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Astros' Justin Verlander: 'I'm not ready to retire'

Justin Verlander wasn't on the Houston Astros' playoff roster, but the 41-year-old future Hall of Famer isn't quite ready to retire just yet, he said The athlete's Chandler Rome after Houston was eliminated from the postseason on Wednesday.

“I want to keep pitching, competing,” Verlander said. “I’m not ready to step down yet.”

Verlander was 5-6 with a 5.48 ERA in 17 starts this season and was on the injured list for two months with a neck problem.

The three-time Cy Young winner had a 3.95 ERA in 10 starts before heading to IL in June and an 8.10 ERA in seven starts after his departure, pitching more than five innings in just one of those Missions completed – his last start of the season, a win in Cleveland.

Perhaps more importantly, Verlander pitched 90 1/3 innings, far less than the 140 innings he needed to complete a $35 million vesting option for 2025. Instead, Verlander will enter free agency.

Verlander could be an attractive option in free agency for the Detroit Tigers, where Verlander began his career. The Tigers – who defeated the Astros in the Wild Card Series on Wednesday with a 5-2 win in Game 2 – took Verlander second overall in the 2004 draft out of Old Dominion University. He debuted for the team in 2005 and was named rookie of the year in 2006. Verlander won his first Cy Young Award with the Tigers in 2011 and also won the American League Most Valuable Player award that same year. The Tigers sent him to Houston in 2017. He won his second Cy Young in 2017 and his third in 2022, both as a member of the Astros.

After 2022, Verlander signed a two-year, $86.6 million contract with the Mets. The Mets sent him back to Houston that same year, with the Mets paying most of his salary.

(Photo: Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)

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