Justin Verlander (39, New York Mets), who won a huge contract despite his age. But he wasn’t without a crisis.
The American media New York Post said on the 11th (Korean time), “Verlander, who once had the worst season, used that time as an opportunity to change the rest of his career.”
Verlander recently signed a two-year, $86 million contract with the New York Mets. With an amazing record of 18 wins, 4 losses and an earned run average of 1.75 this year, he took his own video as well as the team’s World Series victory.
Thanks to this, Verlander will receive a huge annual salary of more than 40 million dollars (about 52.2 billion won) on average, even though he turns 40 next year. So far, there is no sign of aging.
From the beginning of his career, Verlander was known for being an inning eater. After joining the starting lineup in earnest in 2006, he started with 201⅔ innings in 2007 and until 2019, he consistently digested more than 200 innings except for one season out of 13 seasons. Thanks to this, his career innings are 3163, which is the record for an active player after Jack Greinke (3247 innings), who debuted in the major leagues a year earlier.
But it’s not like Verlander didn’t have periods of hesitation. After winning the Triple Crown in 2011 and winning MVP, which is rare for a pitcher, he fell into a slump with an ERA of 4.54 in 2014, three years later. His 104 earned runs were first in the American League. Some pointed out that excessive inning digestion led to a slump.
Verlander, who underwent core muscle surgery after the season, worked with a pitching specialist to improve his pitching form. Through video analysis and the like, he tried to get back to his 2011 form.
Verlander, who went into technical modifications, also focused on strengthening his physical abilities. At the urging of his now wife, Kate Upton, 30, he was introduced to trainer Peter Park. It is said that Verlander’s body was not in very good condition at the time. Park looked back, saying, “It might be a big deal if I say this, but I was really surprised.” “In our gym, there were middle school students with stronger upper bodies than him. 토토사이트
With the help of experts, Verlander gradually regained his past. Recording an average ERA of 3.38 in 133⅓ innings in the 2015 season, he revived with 16 wins the following year. Afterwards, he underwent Tommy John surgery (elbow ligament joint surgery) in 2020, but returned successfully this year and won a great contract.
Verlander still throws a good ball. According to Baseball Savant, his average fastball speed this year is 95 mph, rather than six years ago (94.1 mph). It means that the adjustment at the time has been effective for a long time.
“Tommy John surgery rebooted him,” Park said. “Now you could call it Verlander 2.0.”