Joey Votto offers hat-tip to Justin Verlander after last Tigers start is officially confirmed

The Tigers made the official announcement on Tuesday: Justin Verlander will make not only his final start as a Tiger but the final start of his major league career on Saturday against the Pirates.

The last time the team made an official announcement was back in June, but he ended up scratched two days before he was set to take the mound. He was never activated from the IL, and fans were almost positive that would be that. While the sentiment behind the Tigers' one-year, $13 million deal was nice, the truth of the matter was that they had signed the oldest player in baseball with a recent history of injury. While disappointing, this wasn't altogether surprising.

But Verlander has worked seemingly tirelessly to get back out there for one last ride before enjoying his retirement and eventually being inducted at Cooperstown. Fans have our fingers and toes crossed that it really happens this time, and that we get a glimpse of the Must-See JV we were spoiled with for 13 years.

Fellow future Hall of Famer Joey Votto took to Twitter to salute Verlander after the start was confirmed.

Joey Votto offers congratulations to Justin Verlander after his last Tigers start was confirmed

Votto spent all 17 of his major league seasons with the Reds, finishing with a career line of .294/.409/.511, 356 homers, 1,144 RBI, an MVP award, six All-Star appearances, and a Gold Glove.

Although he arguably hurt his legacy in the game by overstaying his welcome into his late-30s and then attempting to stage an ultimately unsuccessful comeback with his hometown Blue Jays, the recent induction of a guy like Joe Mauer into the Hall of Fame basically etches Votto's destiny in stone. He's since become a rather vibrant on-air analyst.

He only has six career plate appearances against Verlander, and usually got the better of him, going 3-for-5 with a walk. All three of those hits were doubles.

But the two come from the same era. Verlander debuted in 2005, Votto in 2007. Verlander famously skyrocketed through the minors and skipped Triple-A, but they crossed paths multiple times in the Florida State League in 2005, when they were in High-A.

It's a reminder that Verlander's departure from the game is bringing that era to a close. Although Max Scherzer is still out there, there are very few guys left in the game with Verlander's longevity, and that in itself is just one of the many reasons we'll be so sad to see him go.

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