Future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander didn't take any time off following his retirement at the end of the 2026 season, joining FOX Sports as a studio analyst for the 2026 postseason. The right-hander, who hung up the cleats after 21 MLB seasons, joined legends like Alex Rodriguez, David Ortiz and Derek Jeter on the analysts desk for Tuesday's coverage of the NLDS games, and went viral after getting hilarious reactions from some of baseball's biggest stars. Verlander first spoke to Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman, who cut Verlander off before his question after hearing the right-hander introduce himself.
"Hey, J," Freeman said excitedly. Congratulations, that was so awesome to watch in that final start. Congratulations on a Hall-of-Fame career, miss you and congrats." Freeman's heartwarming message made plenty of headlines, but San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado kept things more lighthearted after hearing Verlander ask him a question, reacting with a similar disbelief after the recently retired legend's introduction.
"Hey didn't you just retire, man?" Machado said. "You gotta enjoy it a little bit, come on man!" Verlander made his MLB debut in 2005, one season after the Detroit Tigers drafted him with the No. 2 overall pick. He didn't break out until the following year, winning the AL Rookie of the Year award with 4.0 bWAR and a 3.63 ERA through 30 starts, of which he won 17.
He stayed with the Tigers until 2017, making six All-Star appearances and 380 starts before they traded him to the Houston Astros. Verlander stayed with the Astros for the following five seasons, earning three more All-Star appearances and winning two World Series, the only ones of his career. He split the 2023 season with the Astros and New York Mets before spending one more year in Houston.
He spent 2025 with the San Francisco Giants before returning to Detroit for two starts in 2026. Over the course of his 21 seasons in MLB, Verlander had a 3.33 ERA through 557 starts, throwing 26 complete games and nine shutouts. He struck out 3,560 batters in 3,576 innings pitched, and accrued 82.3 bWAR.
At the time of his retirement, Verlander was the active leader in bWAR, wins, games started, complete games, shutouts, innings pitched, strikeouts and batters faced. Verlander is a legend of the modern game, and will undoubtedly be a first-ballot Hall of Famer when eligible.
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