MLB Rumors: Cardinals roadblock, Pirates waiting game, Verlander out?
By Mark Powell
MLB Rumors: Is Justin Verlander on the outs with the Mets?
There isn’t much indication right now that the New York Mets will trade away Justin Verlander. If anything, Steve Cohen would like to retool around this core — which includes JV and Max Scherzer — with an eye towards 2024. However, so much can change in just one night.
Verlander opened the second half for the Mets on Friday against the Los Angeles Dodgers. It did not go well, as he walked six batters in an eventual 6-0 loss to the Dodgers. Fans were not thrilled, and booed JV as he walked off the mound.
Justin Verlander was booed as he walked off the Citi Field mound following the top of the fifth.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) July 15, 2023
Verlander's line: 5 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 6 BB, 6 K, 104 pitches.
Dodgers 3, Mets 0, mid-five.
Overall, that’s not a horrible stat line from Verlander. Though he could have been better, New York gave him no run support, which surely didn’t help matters. The Mets started the second half the same way they ended most games in the first half — on the losing end.
“It sucks,” Verlander said. “This was not a good game of baseball in any facet. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t go on a roll. We played good baseball going into the break and I’ll be damned if one game is going to be the thing that says we sure can’t go on. That’s not it.”
Verlander’s optimism is admirable, but it’s also not realistic. Steve Cohen has made it clear he’s unhappy with how this team is currently performing, and should it continue, radical changes are not out of the realm of possibility.