SF Giants sign future Hall-of-Famer Justin Verlander to surprise 1-year deal

The SF Giants made a surprise move by signing veteran pitcher Justin Verlander to a one-year contract. The 41-year-old and future member of the Hall of Fame has struggled with injury in recent years but could have a resurgence.

This news comes via Jeff Passan of ESPN who reported the signing.

SF Giants sign veteran pitcher Justin Verlander to one-year contract

Verlander struggled last season with the Houston Astros, posting a 5.48 ERA in 17 starts. He did also deal with injury the last few seasons which may have limited his numbers.

Of course, the main concern with signing a 41-year-old is injury. Will Verlander's body be able to make it through the rigors of a 162-game season? The Giants are probably not expecting it to.

After San Francisco missed out on Corbin Burnes, their options to bolster their rotation became limited. Signing Verlander is a nice counterbalance to the younger arms they will rely on in the rotation like Kyle Harrison and Jordan Hicks. Also, there is the added benefit that those younger pitchers will be able to learn from Verlander and pick his brain which is invaluable considering he is one of the best pitchers of his generation.

The move is reminiscent of when the Giants signed Hall of Fame pitcher Randy Johnson to a contract in 2009 in what ended up being the final year of his career.

Giants fans have fond memories of Verlander pitching in Oracle Park. Back in Game 1 of the 2012 World Series he surrendered 5 earned runs and two home runs to Pablo Sandoval, failing to make it beyond four innings pitched.

Giants fans will now have to hope he fares a little better than that in 2025. After all, he is only two years removed from winning a Cy Young Award at the age of 39 so he may still have some gas left in the tank.

It is an interesting move and we will have to see how it pans out for San Francisco. For now, it at least gives their rotation some more depth and takes some pressure off the younger arms in the rotation. Now we have to see how effective and how durable Verlander can be at this stage of his career.