MLB Rumors: Astros had a secret weapon to acquire Justin Verlander

The Houston Astros landed Justin Verlander from the New York Mets at the MLB trade deadline. They owe Martin Maldonado a gift basket.

Despite his struggles at the plate, Martin Maldonado continues to hold onto his job in Houston because of the relationships he has around baseball.

Maldonado is an excellent defensive catcher, don’t get me wrong. He can call a game with the best of them. But Maldonado is one of a select few backstops who can get away with hitting below the Mendoza line on a regular basis because he is so beloved. The long list of current and former teammates who Maldonado considers good friends is extensive, and it includes Justin Verlander.

Verlander and Maldonado keep in regular contact, and spoke about a potential JV fit back in Houston prior to the former waiving his no-trade clause.

Astros: Martin Maldonado seals Justin Verlander trade

After speaking with Maldonado, the Astros quickly became the favorites to land Verlander. In fact, they were his preferred landing spot, which worked out just fine for Steve Cohen and the Mets, which acquired top-100 prospect Drew Gilbert after taking on most of Verlander’s contract.

Maldonado served as Houston’s ace in the hole, maintaining a positive work relationship with Verlander despite the two no longer being teammates. Staying in touch isn’t always easy, especially with old friends who head elsewhere. For Maldonado to put the work in shows that he sees the bigger picture.

Along with Maldonado, Verlander’s trust in Jim Crane played a major role in his approval of the trade. Crane, however, credited GM Dana Brown for making the deal happen

“(General manager) Dana (Brown) and his team worked on it hard,” Crane told the AP. “After we looked at the numbers — it’s always tough to give up prospects, but I think they determined that it was the right move. We needed starting pitching. He’s been throwing well. And I think the other factor is they ate a lot of the contract. So it wasn’t a really hard decision. It was just, would we give up enough prospects?”

In the end, one prospect was enough. Verlander is back in Houston for good.