Tigers insider suggests desired price point for possible Justin Verlander reunion

This could be a conversation worth having.

Emma Lingan

Colorado Rockies v San Francisco Giants / Andy Kuno/San Francisco Giants/GettyImages

The Justin Verlander conversation never really goes away in Detroit. It just hibernates.

Every winter, it re-emerges in some new form — part nostalgia, part practicality, part emotional tug-of-war between what the Tigers should do and what the fanbase wants them to do. And now, thanks to Evan Woodberry of MLive, that conversation finally has something it hasn’t had in years: a realistic framework.

Woodberry laid it out plainly last week. Verlander made $15 million in 2025 with the San Francisco Giants, giving them 152 innings across 29 starts. That’s not ace-level dominance anymore, but it’s real, tangible value — especially when stacked next to what Detroit got from Alex Cobb at the same price: nothing.

But Verlander is about to turn 43. That puts him in territory that is, frankly, hostile to pitchers. The cliff is real. The risk is real. And after being burned by Cobb’s health, it makes sense that the Tigers would be wary of committing meaningful money to another aging arm.

Still, Woodberry floated a number that feels like the first honest middle ground in this saga: below $10 million.

That’s the sweet spot. That’s the number where this stops being a sentimental indulgence and starts becoming a defensible baseball decision.

Tigers insider suggests Justin Verlander reunion could be possible at the right price

At a sub-$10 million price point, you’re not buying “prime Verlander.” You’re buying innings. You’re buying professionalism. You’re buying a pitcher who, even in decline, just gave his last team more than 150 frames. You’re buying stability for a rotation that still needs insulation behind Tarik Skubal. And yes — you’re buying a story that this franchise desperately needs.

Because here’s the uncomfortable truth: the Tigers are trying to build something real, but they are still starving for connective tissue between eras. They have young stars. They have a Cy Young winner in Skubal. They have momentum.

What they don’t have is a living, breathing bridge between “what this franchise was” and “what it wants to become.” Verlander is that bridge.

If it comes down to a coin flip between Verlander and another veteran innings-eater, Woodberry is right: there is nothing wrong with letting emotion tip the scale. This isn’t charity. It’s marketing, morale, and meaning layered on top of a perfectly serviceable baseball decision.

Under $10 million, Verlander becomes something else entirely. He’s no longer a risky luxury. He’s a calculated bet with upside that extends beyond the box score.

And maybe — just maybe — he gets to finish where it all started.

Emma Lingan

Emma Lingan is an MLB Staff Writer for FanSided primarily covering the Pittsburgh Pirates. She has been covering baseball for more than a decade dating back to her time as a student at Wake Forest University, and she has won two gold medals as a member of the U.S. National Team delegation (2016 Pan-American Championships & 2017 World Baseball Classic). A native of Washington, D.C. and current resident of Nashville, Tenn., she is also entering her seventh season as a credentialed NHL media member and currently covers the NHL’s Nashville Predators for The Hockey News. When she's not watching hockey, baseball or football, she enjoys podcasting, reading, going to the gym, consuming large amounts of coffee and taking long walks with her dog, Minkah. You can follow her @Emma_lingan on Twitter and Instagram.