Could This Future Hall of Famer Join The A's Rotation?
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After an impressive 2025 season that saw A's rookies Nick Kurtz and Jacob Wilson break records and prove to be franchise players for the club, the team is currently looking to address their biggest weakness—pitching.
The team has plenty of depth options to make the starting rotation, but if the team wants to step up and get to the next level, they will need to add one arm at the very least. The good news for the A's is that there are plenty of high-caliber arms left in free agency that they could land to bolster their staff.
With guys like Framber Valdez, Ranger Suarez, and Lucas Giolito highlighting the names available on the market, those guys would likely be too pricey for the A's. However, looking down the list of more affordable arms, there are still a handful of perfect fits for the club.
With that being said, this future Hall of Famer could be the best fit for the young A's staff.
MLB veteran Justin Verlander is a free agent who could be looking to join his fifth team for his 21st season in the league. The soon-to-be 43-year-old has quite the resumé. He is a former MVP, 3-time Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, a Triple Crown Winner, 9-time All-Star, 2-time World Series Champion, 2-time ERA champion, and an ALCS MVP.
All of his awards and accolades will earn him a spot in Cooperstown whenever he decides to hang up the cleats.
The A's have seen their fair share of Verlander over the years, especially when he was in their division during his seven seasons with the Houston Astros, and when he knocked them out of the postseason in 2012 and 2013 with the Detroit Tigers. Now, the club could have the opportunity to have him pitch in green and gold for the 2026 season.
Verlander's impact on the A's team would be more than just taking the mound for the team, but also being an amazing mentor to the young A's pitching staff. Even if he struggles with injury during his age-43 season, he would still be the perfect guy to be in the A's clubhouse as a value resource day in and day out.
The right-hander also showed last season that he still has a lot left in the tank. In 152 innings with the San Francisco Giants, Verlander pitched to a 3.85 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. Notably, he finished his 2025 campaign strong, as in his final 13 starts of the season, he posted a 2.60 ERA.
The A's will play their second season at a minor league site in West Sacramento before the team ultimately plans to move to Las Vegas for the 2028 season. It will certainly be difficult to convince someone of Verlander's caliber to pitch in a minor league stadium, but there are plenty of reasons that suggest he could be a perfect fit for the team.
The club needs a strong veteran starter, so he'd have a guaranteed spot in their rotation if he signed. He'll also likely get the opportunity to be a starter for a bunch of other teams, but the A's will be able to give him innings, and be surrounded by a bunch of younger pitchers that are willing to learn from the future Hall of Famer.
The A's are young. Both of the top two finishers for the AL Rookie of the Year, Nick Kurtz and Jacob Wilson, are on the team and looking to expand upon their breakout rookie seasons. The pitching staff includes several high-potential arms, such as Luis Morales and Jacob Lopez. Adding a proven and successful arm to the mix would likely make both parties interested in a short-term deal.
With the veteran sitting on 266 career wins, he's just 34 away from perhaps being the last pitcher in MLB history to crack 300 wins. With the A's highly skilled bats supporting him, he may be able to snap up a few extra victories, if he can continuously go five frames.
It's obvious that the A's would be interested in bringing in not only the talents of Justin Verlander, but also his mentorship. It would come down to whether or not he would be fine spending what could be one of the final seasons of his career at a minor league site.
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I grew up playing baseball, and also enjoyed watching and writing about my favorite team, the A’s. Being a diehard A’s fan from New Jersey is certainly not common, but I love the team and all of the current and former players so much. I currently attend school at Penn State Scranton where I get the opportunity to play college baseball.
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