Verlander ‘just trying to be present’ as FA looms

Published

3 years ago

October 29, 2022

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Oct 27, 2022

HOUSTON — Justin Verlander ventured into the free agent market for the first time last offseason and could do so again in a matter of weeks. His contract comes with a $25 million player option for 2023, granted by virtue of him reaching, and easily surpassing, the 130-inning threshold this season.

But in all likelihood he’ll decline it in search of greater compensation, setting up the possibility of Friday’s World Series opener being his last home start as a member of the Houston Astros.

“I’m just kind of along for the ride right now,” said Verlander, who will oppose Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Aaron Nola in Game 1. “It’s been a wonderful year for me, my family at home and in the sport. I’m just trying to be present and part of it. I’m not really trying to focus too much on what’s ahead.”

Verlander, 39, vaulted himself into contention for the American League Cy Young Award in his return from Tommy John surgery, winning 18 games while leading the majors in ERA (1.75) and WHIP (0.83). Verlander was the eighth-highest-paid pitcher this season and could command an annual salary in the $40 million range on the open market, given Max Scherzer’s three-year, $130 million deal with the New York Mets last offseason.

Of course, the Astros could step up and offer that themselves, keeping him in the city where he has starred since coming over in a midseason trade in 2017.

Verlander called last year’s brief free agent experience “stressful” but also “interesting.”

“I enjoyed the process,” he said. “I’m intrigued moving forward.”

His focus, however, is on the Phillies, the team he pitched five no-hit innings against in his final regular-season start on Oct. 4. Verlander went on to struggle against the Seattle Mariners in the opener of the American League Division Series, allowing six runs on 10 hits in four innings, but he pitched six innings of one-run ball against the New York Yankees in Game 1 of the AL Championship Series.

Now he’s in search of his first career World Series win.

Verlander is 0-6 with a 5.68 ERA in seven career World Series starts, making this the only stage he has yet to really conquer.

“It’s not my goal, though,” Verlander said of being the winning pitcher of record in the World Series. “My goal’s not to go out there and win a baseball game. There’s been games in the World Series that I don’t deserve a win. There’s been games that I thought I pitched well enough where we could get a win and it just didn’t work out. At this point in the season, personal goals like that just don’t matter. Try to win the game however you can. I was one of the happiest people in the world Game 1 against Seattle when we won that game. I pitched like crap, but we won. It doesn’t matter anymore. It would be nice, though.”

Sports

Wisconsin QB O’Neil carted off with leg injury

Published

4 hours ago

November 8, 2025

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Wisconsin QB O'Neil carted off with leg injury

Associated Press

Nov 8, 2025, 05:53 PM ET

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin quarterback Danny O’Neil was carted off the field and into the locker room after injuring his leg in the first quarter of the Badgers’ game against No. 24 Washington (No. 23 College Football Playoff) on Saturday.

O’Neil got up at the end of a 21-yard keeper, limped and then went back down and clutched his right leg. Wisconsin announced in the second quarter that O’Neil would miss the rest of the game with what was officially ruled a lower-body injury.

The San Diego State transfer was making his first start since a Sept. 13 loss to Alabama, though he had played in a reserve role Sept. 20 against Maryland and Oct. 18 against Ohio State.

Freshman Carter Smith took over for O’Neil and made his college debut Saturday.

Quarterback issues have hindered Wisconsin throughout the season. Billy Edwards Jr. was Wisconsin’s first-team quarterback at the start of the year, but he sprained his knee in the second quarter of the Badgers’ season opener and has played only one full series since.

Sports

Ohio St. WR Tate sits out with undisclosed injury

Published

4 hours ago

November 8, 2025

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Ohio St. WR Tate sits out with undisclosed injury

Jake TrotterNov 8, 2025, 04:43 PM ET
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Ohio State standout receiver Carnell Tate sat out Saturday’s game against Purdue after suffering a minor undisclosed injury during pregame warmups.

Coach Ryan Day said the Buckeyes held Tate out just as a precaution.

“[Tate] wanted to play,” Day said, “but we’ve got a lot of football ahead us.”

The top-ranked Buckeyes (9-0, 6-0 Big Ten) still defeated Purdue 34-10 to remain unbeaten. Jeremiah Smith led Ohio State with a career-high 10 receptions for 137 yards and a touchdown.

This season, Tate has 39 receptions for 711 receiving yards and 7 touchdowns.

The Buckeyes play UCLA next weekend.

Sports

Texas Tech hands BYU 1st loss, improves to 9-1

Published

4 hours ago

November 8, 2025

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Texas Tech hands BYU 1st loss, improves to 9-1

Associated Press

Nov 8, 2025, 04:05 PM ET

LUBBOCK, Texas — Stone Harrington kicked a school-record five field goals and standout Texas Tech linebacker Jacob Rodriguez had two takeaways as the No. 9 Red Raiders defeated No. 8 BYU 29-7 on Saturday, holding the previously undefeated Cougars to a season-low 255 total yards in a game with Big 12 and playoff implications.

Behren Morton passed for 216 yards and threw a 9-yard touchdown to Caleb Douglas while Cameron Dickey ran for 121 yards and a 1-yard score for Texas Tech (9-1, 6-1 Big 12, No. 8 CFP), which played in its first top-10 matchup since 2008.

“I told the team we have another gear,” Tech coach Joey McGuire said. “We can play better.”

BYU (8-1, 5-1, No. 7 CFP) had never played in such a game, though the teams could meet again in the Big 12 championship game in four weeks in Arlington, Texas.

Harrington kicked field goals of 47, 39, 34, 29 and 27 yards.

Rodriguez, the FBS leader with seven forced fumbles, had an interception midway through the third period leading to Harrington’s fourth field goal. He recovered a backward pass late in the fourth quarter that set up Harrington’s final kick.

Tech has gone from ranking 121st last season in the FBS allowing 34.8 points per game to fifth at 13.2 going into Saturday and lowering that to 12.6.

“Yeah, we are a better [defensive] team than we were last year,” Rodriguez said. “But … we’ve still got a lot of things to clean up.”

BYU snapped a 10-game winning streak dating back to last season. The Cougars avoided their first shutout since 2017 when Bear Bachmeier threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Chase Roberts midway through the fourth quarter.

The Cougars went into the game third in the FBS in turnover margin at plus-1.25. They lost two fumbles, threw an interception and muffed a punt.

Bachmeier was 23-of-38 passing for 188 yards. The true freshman also had two turnovers, an interception and a backward pass for a fumble.

“A couple of passes and a muffed punt cost us, I think, 13 points,” BYU coach Kalani Sitake said. “Even after that, I thought we were going to be able to respond and make a game of it in the second half, but we weren’t able to do that.”

The Cougars went into play averaging 36.3 points and 434 yards per game. Their previous low offensive output this season was 332 yards in the 27-3 win over Stanford on Sept. 6.

Both teams have home games remaining against UCF, while the Cougars also play at No. 25 Cincinnati — the only other Big 12 team with one league loss — after hosting TCU next week. The Red Raiders host UCF next week before an open date and then their regular-season finale at West Virginia.

The Red Raiders, charter members of the Big 12 in 1996, are in position to play in the conference championship for the first time. Their remaining two opponents are a combined 3-10 in conference play.