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San Francisco Giants President Buster Posey. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
Spring training is just around the corner for all MLB teams. Most rosters are set, including starting rotations. As far as the San Francisco Giants go, it would not be the worst thing if they added another veteran arm for first-year manager Tony Vitello.
The biggest name remaining is left-hander Framber Valdez. It is unlikely at this point that Buster Posey and the front office will make a splash by signing him. The Giants have already signed Tyler Mahle from the Texas Rangers this offseason to replace the outgoing Justin Verlander.
Speaking of Verlander, he remains a free agent after spending last year with San Francisco. Could a reunion in the Bay Area be possible? According to Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report, it is very much on the table.
San Francisco Giants Predicted to Sign Justin Verlander
Reuter predicted each MLB team’s starting rotations for Opening Day, and he has Verlander slotted into San Francisco’s rotation as the No. 3 starter behind Robbie Ray and Logan Webb. Verlander spent last season with the Giants, which would make for an interesting reunion.
“A reunion with the Giants remains one of the most likely outcomes for Justin Verlander, even with veterans Tyler Mahle and Adrian Houser already added. The front office has been busy of late, signing Harrison Bader and Luis Arraez to shore up the lineup, and their willingness to spend makes another one-year deal with Verlander a distinct possibility,” Reuter wrote.
Signing Verlander to a one-year deal makes sense, especially to solidify San Francisco’s rotation. Last season, his numbers looked bad, but they were better as the season went along. He finished 4-11 in 29 starts with a 3.85 ERA in 152 innings with 137 strikeouts. His WAR was just 1.2. In five starts in September, he had a 2.08 ERA in 30.1 innings, and opponents hit a season-low .212 for the month.
Justin Verlander Still Chasing 300 Wins
Verlander has racked up 262 wins and two Cy Young Awards over his career between the Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros, and New York Mets. His four wins last moved him up within 34 of 300 for his career. It’s something he thinks he can reach when he spoke at the end of the 2025 season.
“I think if I can go out and make 29, 30-plus starts and give our team a chance to win for a few more years, then it’s possible,” Verlander said. “I’m not going to say it’s not. It’s definitely harder, though. If you make 29 starts, you’d like to win 10, 15 games. It wasn’t in the cards this year. But maybe this year wasn’t meant to be for wins. Maybe this year was meant to be kind of for health and kind of re-finding myself and getting used to taking the ball every five, six days and just kind of going out there and being able to log some innings. Maybe that will carry me where I need to go.”
San Francisco will again be chasing the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West. They have added depth behind Ray and Webb in the rotation by signing Mahle, and Adrian Houser is predicted to be the fifth starter. Regardless of what things looked like at the end of last season, bringing Verlander back is certainly a low-risk, high-reward move for a team looking to get back to the postseason in 2026.
Scott Roche Scott Roche covers college football, NFL, NBA and MLB for Heavy.com and has three decades of sports writing, covering everything from college to professional sports. More about Scott Roche
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