Justin Verlander-Themed Memories

[Edgy MD]

I'm not sure I ever saw him talking in the dugout to anybody who wasn't Max Scherzer.



He won his 250th (and latest) ballgame in a Mets uniform at Citi Field, and leaves as the winningest active MLB pitcher.



I think he was married to someone, but I'm not sure who.

[metirish]

Euphoric at the signing, then the missed starts, by the time he was himself the team was buried, seemed very honest in post start chats

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

broad-shouldered. Good body language on the mound. Looked like he was about to win 11 straight.



I was just beginning to like him

[Marshmallowmilkshake]

I saw the game in Detroit where he gave up back-to-back homers in the first inning -- Javy Baez and Riley Greene -- then shut them down. Of course, the Mets never got going and lost 2-0.

[A Boy Named Seo]

Same as irish and JCL, he was really just ramping up for us, that dimple-chin making you think Clark Kent was about to become Superman and, poof, he's back to Houston.



I thought he would outperform JdG and he did (RIP Jake's elbow) but who could've guessed it would take him til summer to get going and everything else would've gone to shit around him by then.

[Cowtipper]

I liked watching him pitch. I enjoyed having two future Hall of Famers who were still viable in the rotation, with him and Scherzer. When he was on, he was electric. It's a shame he is going; I came into this season with such high hopes of success.



Verlander and Scherzer, Diaz and Robertson, Quintana and Senga, Lindor and McNeil, Marte and Nimmo. On paper, it was a star-studded team. They underperformed and now they're being dismantled, unfortunately.

[MFS62]

Watching him pitch was a class in pitching.

He worked the speeds, the count and the strike zone, all within what pitches were working that day.

It was a pleasure.

(And those shots of his wife in the stands were pretty good, too)



Later

[G-Fafif]

Attended two of his starts, both wins, including his most recent. I look forward to trying to keep him top of mind long enough to use him as a valuable Immaculate Grid square.

[dances_w_vowels]

I got a Verlander song too. I wrote this one when I woke up this morning.



Can you hear the cheers, Verlander?

I remember long ago another sunny day like this

Out the dugout comes Verlander

It was May you came off the IL and hope was running high

Then we know the team crashed hard

And Billy Eppler wouldn't let this moment pass him by

There was something in the air that night

You did us right, Verlander



Oh Steve opened up his wallet wide

We know you tried, Verlander

Though I never thought that we could lose

There's no regret

Yes we will see you once again

In the visitors' pen, Verlander

Oh you will strike our batters out

We have no doubt, Verlander

[stevejrogers]

Wow, it's not close enough to consider changing the name of The Warren Spahn Curse, but this is interesting since I've joked about the Mets' luck with bringing in former Cy Young Award winners, especially considering the end of their Met tenures (it even fits bringing Tom Seaver back into the fold with leaving him unprotected heading into 1984) going all the way back to bringing 1957 winner, and arguably one of the greatest to ever toe a MLB rubber, 44-year old Warren Spahn as a player/coach before the 1965 season.



Only Spahn was pretty washed and was released on July 17th. Ended up signing with the Giants a few days later and while lasting through the end of the year, to “slightly” better results, it was his final 16 appearances in MLB (for some reason Spahn played in the Mexican leagues and the PCL the next two years respectively).



In the end though, Spahn pitched in 20 games and an even 126 innings in a Met uniform. Granted Verlander, at 40-years old, missed a month, and he was traded more out of correcting the course of the season and organization, but his Met career ends with 16 games and 94 and a third innings pitched.