Giants Have Let Down Justin Verlander In Multiple Ways This Season

The San Francisco Giants have let down Justin Verlander this season in his quest for 300 wins.

Aug 16, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants pitcher Justin Verlander (35) throws a pitch against the Tampa Bay Rays during the first inning at Oracle Park. | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

It has been a terrible second half of the season for the San Francisco Giants, who have been in a complete free fall. 

At the All-Star break, the Giants were still very much in the playoff picture in the National League. There was a lot of hope that the franchise was going to snap their playoff drought after the acquisition of Rafael Devers from the Boston Red Sox, but the team has gone in the wrong direction. 

Despite being aggressive early and getting Devers, San Francisco ended up being a seller at the trade deadline. Due to a terrible stretch to begin the second half and how poorly the team has performed since, this was a wise move. 

If the Giants were to have been buyers, it’s hard to imagine that the results would have been much different. Unfortunately, now the wheels have come off for the franchise, and they have been one of the worst teams in baseball of late. 

With the struggles of the franchise, San Francisco will likely start to try and get some of their younger players some opportunities in the coming weeks to see if they can be part of the plan for 2026. However, they also have a future Hall of Famer who might still be trying to prove that he can be an effective pitcher in the Majors. 

How Has Justin Verlander Performed?

Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Justin Verlander was a significant signing by the franchise over the winter. After a poor campaign with the Houston Astros in 2024, the right-hander signed a one-year deal with the Giants to prove himself and likely try to get closer to 300 wins. 

Even though he has been better than he was in 2024, Verlander isn't that once-dominant ace anymore. So far, he has a 1-9 record and 4.23 ERA. While that might be a high ERA by his standards, the future Hall of Famer hasn't been bad for the Giants and deserves a lot more than one win. 

Justin Verlander threw seven shutout innings but won't get his second win as a Giant. He has the second-worst run support in baseball and the bullpen just blew a lead for the sixth time in a Verlander start.

— Alex Pavlovic (@PavlovicNBCS) August 17, 2025

Unfortunately for Verlander, he has had the second-worst run support in baseball, and the great bullpen of the Giants has blown six leads for him. With age being a major concern for his quest to get 300 wins, the right-hander, who has only had one so far, is a major blow to that goal. 

However, even though the wins might not be coming right now, Verlander has proven that he can still be a middle-of-the-rotation pitcher. With him being just on a one-year deal with San Francisco, it will be interesting to see what the future holds for one of the all-time greats.