it dropped down but it's still elite FOR HIS AGE.
Even with last year's awful season of reduced velocity, he still ended up with the 2nd highest velocity of the 56 starters in MLB who were age 31 years and older (oddly enough Alfredo Simon was rated #1). Verlander's start Saturday puts him 3rd out of 58 guys this year.
I think the one thing that sticks out in all this is how few pitchers there are his age (turned 32 in February) that are good. MLB has really turned into a young man's game with all the young up and coming stars with both hitting and pitching.
Outside of Jason Hammel, Lackey, Shields, Wainwright (injured), Iwakuma and A.J. Burnett, there just aren't many guys that are JV's age who are good starting pitchers. That contract of Verlander's keeps looking worse, ugh.
I've contemplated a hard and fast rule that a GM should never give a 9 figure deal to a guy in his late 20s, or 30s. I think the Angels will be ok with Trout. But I think you might be onto something with pitchers.
It seems like when I as a kid there were lots of great pitchers in their mid late thirties. And how old was Kenny Rogers when we got him?
I haven't regretted letting Scherzer go, and I'm 100% in favor of not signing Price. Being a baseball GM is not easy.