Detroit Tigers rumors: Justin Verlander looks like he’s staying put

Detroit Tigers rumors are still making the rounds. The latest comes from a tweet from USA Today’s Bob Nightengale regarding Detroit starting pitcher Justin Verlander.

Detroit Tigers rumors are back.

Even with the July trade deadline in the rearview mirror, rumors continue to swirl.

Trades are still possible in August, it’s just that players must go through the waiver process before being dealt.

One Detroit player whose name has consistently appeared in trade rumors is starting pitcher Justin Verlander. The latest rumor regarding Verlander comes via a recent tweet from USA Today’s Bob Nightengale.

Nightengale tweeted the following on Wednesday afternoon:

"“The #Tigers believe it’s highly unlikely that Justin Verlander will be traded by tomorrow’s midnight trade deadline.”"

Verlander currently ranks third among all Tigers players with a 3.0 WAR.

Only fellow starting pitcher Michael Fulmer and outfielder Justin Upton have higher WAR stats at 3.5 and 4.1 respectively.

On the season, Detroit’s longtime ace has tossed 166 innings. He’s striking out 23.9 percent of the batters he’s faced, and owns a 3.83 ERA, a 4.03 FIP and a 4.45 xFIP.

Verlander’s run-prevention numbers have largely been marred by a handful of rough starts.

A few bad starts

He was tagged for nine hits, seven runs, three walks and two home runs against Cleveland on July 2.

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Previously, the veteran surrendered nine hits, six runs, three walks and three home runs in 5.2 frames against Houston on May 25 and 11 hits, nine runs, three home runs and a walk in four innings versus Cleveland on April 15.

Otherwise, Verlander has allowed more than three runs in just three of his other 24 starts.

Entering his start versus Colorado on Wednesday, the ace has allowed two runs or fewer in 14 of his 27 starts.

Verlander’s contract and no-trade rights are potential hurdles in any kind of deal.

The hurler’s large salary ($28 million per year through 2019 with a 2020 vesting option, per the folks at Spotrac) limits his market in terms of what teams can afford his contract.

What’s more, Verlander also has 10 and 5 rights, giving him no-trade protection.

A player who has been in the league for 10 years, and has spent at least five seasons with one team gains 10 and 5 rights.

Verlander, who was drafted second-overall in 2004 by the Tigers and made his Major League debut in 2005, more than qualifies.

The future

Moving forward, it will certainly be interesting to see what happens with Verlander.

The Tigers could conceivably trade a few veterans in the offseason, and Verlander is one of the team’s better trade chips.

Next: Tigers need to add starting pitching in the offseason

That being said, the veteran is too valuable to be moved in a salary dump. Detroit shouldn’t move him just to be rid of his contract.