Tigers Manager Delivers Concerning Injury Update on Justin Verlander
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The Detroit Tigers are starting to find their way, winning five in a row headed into Thursday and looking stronger both on offense and in the pitching staff.
Right now though, Detroit is doing it without one of their most anticipated names with future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander landing on the injured list after just one start before he could even make his grand return to Comerica Park.
Originally being shelved with what was described as hip inflammation, Verlander has been working his way back and threw a bullpen this week. While it did not go horribly, manager A.J. Hinch did not inspire confidence that the right-hander is on the cusp of returning while describing his status.
Hinch Says Verlander is Not Ready Yet to Return to Tigers
"I'll try to categorize it accurately," Hinch began via Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic. "I think he's doing OK. I don't think he's necessarily taken a step forward, and he hasn't taken a step back. He had a bullpen yesterday that went OK. It wasn't quite to the level that I think he wanted or we wanted, but it wasn't a setback or making things worse.
"We're going to take it day-by-day. He's going to Boston with us and will do something there. I don't know what that is yet. And we'll try to continue to make good decisions. It's going a little slower than I think he or we anticipated, but that's OK. We've got to make sure we get this right, because it's not quite to 100 percent yet where we can advance to game activity."
While there is no need to take unnecessary risks with a 43-year-old this early in a season, the way Hinch is speaking does not give any sort of real timeline for his return. Hip issues are always tricky as Detroit found out with Alex Cobb a year ago, and it does not sound like Verlander is getting better.
Tigers Should Potentially Be Worried About Verlander
While it's beyond understandable for someone who has been pitching in this league for over two decades to take a little bit longer to recover from an injury, it's been two weeks and it does not sound like Verlander has improved at all.
Clearly, he was a big part of the pitching plan when he was signed and not just brought in ceremoniously, and losing him for an extended period would sting both fans eager to see the legend pitch and the team's hopes of contending.
Though Hinch did not provide a timeline, it seems safe to say that Verlander -- who will likely have to make rehab starts -- is at least another couple of weeks from that possibility even being discussed.
Fans should monitor this situation closely over the coming weeks and looks for any sort of positive update on Verlander. If the news does not get better in the near future, serious alarms are going to start to be set off among the faithful in the Motor City.
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Michael Brauner is a 2022 graduate of the University of Alabama with a degree in Sports Media. He covers various MLB teams across the On SI network and you can also find his work on Yellowhammer News covering the Alabama Crimson Tide and Auburn Tigers as well as on the radio producing and co-hosting 'The Opening Kickoff' every weekday morning on 105.5 WNSP FM in Mobile, Alabama.