Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images
The Padres desperately need more starting pitching. One aging future Hall of Famer may be able to provide some needed depth.
The Major League Baseball season is a grueling marathon. The 2025 Padres had 11 different pitchers make at least two starts during the season. As of now, the Padres have two starting pitchers who have made at least 30 starts at the big league level- Nick Pivetta and Joe Musgrove. As stated, Yu Darvish will miss the 2026 season with UCL surgery. With three other spots in the starting rotation, the Padres have Randy Vasquez, Kyle Hart, JP Sears, Matt Waldron, Jhony Brito, and Jackson Wolf vying for those spots if the season begins today.
Needless to say, the Padres desperately need more viable MLB-level starting pitchers in the rotation.
Justin Verlander is a future Hall of Famer. He is the active leader in most pitching categories to this point. The three-time Cy Young Award winner has a higher career WAR than names like Nolan Ryan and Tom Glavine, and as many top-five finishes in Cy Young voting as Greg Maddux and Randy Johnson. He is currently a free agent.
The real question is, is Verlander viable enough to sign to the Padres’ rotation at soon-to-be 43 years old?
Last year, he tossed an impressive 152 innings for the Giants, with a respectable 3.85 ERA and 103 ERA+. San Diego could do a lot worse than that in their third or fourth rotation spot. Another notable aspect of last season is that it was not like Verlander started hot and then tapered off down the stretch from fatigue due to Father Time. In fact, his last six starts of the season, from late August through the end of the year, were arguably his best stretch of games all season. In those final six outings, he tossed 35 1/3 innings with a stifling 1.78 ERA.
As the year went on, Verlander got better, not worse.
Does his fastball approach mid-to-high 90s anymore? No. But what he did last year to great effect was add some dimensions to his breaking balls, incorporating the trendy sweeper as well as his classic mix of slider, curveball, and changeup. Hitters batted a microscopic .053 against his sweeper last year.
Also, his velocity and spin rates in 2025 were higher than those from his last year in Houston in 2024. He even touched 96.4 mph on his fastball in late September last season. The second fastest pitch of his season (97.8) came in August.
By these accounts, Verlander still has something left in the tank to give.
It’s not like the Padres would be signing post-Tigers era Verlander to a massive deal spanning a decade. This is a new version of Verlander, more scrappy and crafty. He adjusted well to his new self last year in San Francisco. The fact that he held up for 29 starts and got better down the stretch of the season is impressive.
Plus, Verlander has not been shy about his desire to reach the immortalizing landmark of 300 career wins. At 266, the odds are slim. But if the Padres sign him to a one-year deal and he pitches as he did in San Francisco last season, the Friars can probably get him 10 wins towards that total. In exchange, he provides valuable depth and a veteran presence on a team in need of both.
Native of Escondido, CA. Lived in San Diego area for 20 years. Padres fan since childhood (mid-90s). I have been writing since 2014. I currently live near Seattle, WA and am married to a Seattle sports girl. I wore #19 on my high school baseball team for Tony Gwynn. I am a stats and sports history nerd. I attended BYU on the Idaho campus. I also love Star Wars.
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