Justin Verlander's Box Score Stats, Highlights from Final Start Before MLB Retirement

Justin Verlander made the final start of his legendary MLB career Saturday when the Detroit Tigers hosted the Pittsburgh Pirates at Comerica Park.

The likely future Hall of Famer threw 5.1 innings and exited the game with the Tigers trailing 2-0. The full line for Verlander's last career start was as follows:

Justin Verlander honored before final MLB start

Prior to taking the mound, Verlander received a special introduction, allowing Tigers fans to show their love for one of the franchise's all-time greats:

Verlander offered some glimpses of the prime version of himself throughout the start, sitting down six Pirates via strikeout:

The only major blemishes against Verlander were the solo home runs he allowed to Brandon Lowe and Jacob Gonzalez in the fourth and fifth innings, respectively:

Sitting at 87 pitches through five innings, Verlander came back out for the top of the sixth and got Lowe to pop out to the catcher.

Tigers manager A.J. Hinch and Verlander's daughter, Genevieve, then made their way to the mound to lift Verlander from the game for the final time, and he received a standing ovation from the Tigers faithful.

Verlander, 43, is the oldest active MLB player, and he announced in July that he would be retiring at the conclusion of the 2026 season.

After spending his first 13 MLB seasons in Detroit, Verlander returned to the Tigers this past offseason in hopes of ending his career on a high note.

Unfortunately for Verlander, he spent nearly the entire season on the injured list and was limited to just two starts, plus the Tigers entered play on Saturday with a disappointing 75-85 record.

While 2026 did not go the way Tigers fans expected for Verlander or the team as a whole, Saturday allowed the city of Detroit to show its appreciation for one of the greatest starting pitchers of all time.

Verlander's most substantial success came during his first stint with the Tigers, as he was a six-time All-Star, one-time American League Cy Young Award winner, one-time American League MVP Award winner and the 2006 American League Rookie of the Year.

He earned three more All-Star selections while with the Houston Astros and won two more AL Cy Young awards in 2019 and 2022 as well.

All told, Verlander will finish his 21-year career with the Tigers, Astros, New York Mets and San Francisco Giants as a 10-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young winner, one-time MVP and two-time World Series champion, both of which occurred while with the Astros.

Verlander also retires with 266 career wins, which is tied for 37th on Major League Baseball's all-time list, plus 3,560 strikeouts, which are the eighth-most in MLB history.