Justin Verlander’s Shoulder MRI: Injury Of Detroit Tigers Pitcher Adds To Season Woes

The road trip to Pittsburgh and Toronto wasn’t pretty. Now, with Justin Verlander’s shoulder injury, the Detroit Tigers have to figure out how to get their groove back, at least in their division. Perhaps, the results of Tuesday’s MRI for the rocket-arm pitcher won’t spell further doom for the struggling MLB team.

A battered Verlander headed to the Tigers’ bullpen with complaints of shoulder soreness, but only after giving up a staggering five runs in the first inning against the Pirates, according to a Pittsburgh Post Gazette story. By then, the damage was done and it was too far gone for the fledgling team to recover. From the onset of the game, sources say Justin didn’t show signs of being in form.

Justin’s four-seamers were off the mark, his bag of changeups were lukewarm at best, and everything else was challenged by the Pittsburgh.

In the end, the visiting Tigers lost to the Pirates (11-6) at PNC Park. It capped off a tough schedule, and painted an uncertain future to the balance of the season should Verlander’s scan results indicate a tear, or worse.

The Tigers’ bullpen was all but depleted. With right-hand pitchers, Anibal Sanchez and Joakim Soria, placed on the DL (disability list) after Sunday’s mismatched loss, there was not much left in Detroit’s bag of tricks after Justin Verlander’s injury to his shoulder. Sanchez went out Friday with a right pectoralis major strain after the loss to the Blue Jays, while Soria suffered an oblique strain after Saturday’s game.

Tom Gage of Detroit News shared spoke with the embattled pitcher and shared some tweets:

#Tigers Verlander to have MRI on right shoulder after having soreness and “worst stuff of my career”

— Tom Gage (@Tom_Gage) August 12, 2014

And with so much on the line for the Detroit Tigers’ season, along with the possibility of another limiting injury, Justin hinted at his fears:

Verlander; “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous. I’ve never been through this before. Hopefully, it’s nothing.”

— Tom Gage (@Tom_Gage) August 12, 2014

In January, Verlander went out briefly for core muscle surgery. However, in short order, he was back in the lineup and present for MLB training camp the following month. In fact, he made his seventh consecutive career start as a pitcher on opening day. It seemed things were going well for Justin; he and model girlfriend, Kate Upton, were back together, despite rumors to the contrary, and Detroit quickly got off to nice start to the season.

Still, the Tigers’ front office is likely concerned about the star pitcher. In 2013, Detroit and Verlander inked a lucrative $180 million deal over seven years with a $22 million vesting option in 2020, if he places in the top five on voting for the Cy Young Award in 2019.

Some analysts — and hopeful fans — point to road fatigue in why Justin’s Tigers have dropped six of their last eight games. And the 19-inning grueling match, which tested Detroit’s entire bullpen, didn’t make matters easier. Nevertheless, the Tigers are only in a half-game deficit, with plenty of time ahead to make moves and lean on more Triple A arms, should Justin Verlander go out.

But that is the $100,000 question: Will the hotshot pitcher be sidelined indefinitely with a possible lingering injury or will he heal from this in short order? Finally, who is likely in place to fill his shoes in the worst-case scenario?

[Image via: Wikimedia Commons]