Joe Espada, the manager of the Houston Astros, declared on Tuesday afternoon that Justin Verlander, the starting pitcher, will begin the 2024 season on the injured list. Though he hasn’t experienced any setbacks, the righty still needs more time to prepare for the upcoming season.
“He’s doing very well, but we’re just running out of days here, and we won’t be able to build him up enough to start the season,” Espada told reporters. “It’s just a timing issue. We want to do what’s best for J.V. and for our club, and this is what’s best for us right now.”
For the Mets, what does this mean?
Verlander was first signed by the New York Mets to a two-year, $86.6 million contract with a $35 million vesting option in the offseason of 2023. He was only on the team for six months since things did not work out the way the Mets had hoped, and at the trade deadline, they traded him back to the Astros.
By eating $52.2 million of Verlander’s deal, Mets owner Steve Cohen maximized the team’s return. Should the three-time Cy Young Award winner pitch 140 innings this season, Verlander would also have to pay $17.5 million. This implies that the Mets would keep the $17.5 million and save it for future use if Verlander is unable to meet the limit.
Even though the team would prefer this result, Verlander faced comparable problems the previous season and still managed to log 162.1 innings despite missing the opening month of action. That was 68 innings against the Astros and 94.1 innings against the Mets.
It is reasonable to conclude that the Astros do not really mind that Verlander is beginning the season on the injured list and that they fully anticipate him to start playing regularly as soon as he is cleared to play again.
With so much baseball still to play, the Astros want Verlander around for the long haul and in good condition. Espada said, “We need him for the long haul,” which was extremely evident. We need a healthy JV throughout the entire season since it’s long.”
Verlander intends to throw a live bullpen on Friday and will keep working on his preparations for the game. Before a clear recovery is apparent, he will eventually have the chance to face hitters and possibly be scheduled for a few rehab assignments as well. Once more, this might be advantageous for the Mets; yet, if Verlander sees it as a “hiccup,” there’s no need to panic.