Investing $86.6 million in a pitcher who will turn 40 in February comes with risks, but Justin Verlander used one of the lowest points of his career to help get ahead of them.
One of the worst years of Justin Verlander’s career came in his ninth full season in the big leagues in 2014.
After his rough 2014 season with the Tigers, Justin Verlander began to take better care of and get better in tune with his body.“There’s no magic bullet,” said Annie Gow, a physical therapist who started working with Verlander after the 2014 season. “He wasn’t graced with an amazing whatever — he works hard at it. Everything he has gotten, it’s through hard work. But I think he understood he needed to take care of himself in that offseason phase. Build the strength, get your mobility.
Then, with some help from then-girlfriend, now-wife Kate Upton, Verlander also found a personal trainer in the Los Angeles area, Peter Park, who honed in on improving his mobility, core work and fitness. Park’s initial assessment of Verlander was similar to the one from Gow, the New York City-based PT who saw a then-31-year-old that had a “dysfunctional system” that “was not working optimally.”
With all three specialists, Verlander was not interested in just getting their advice, taking it at face value and moving on. He wanted to know why they suggested the exercises or regiments they did and how it was going to make him better, constantly giving his own feedback in the process. But once he realized how much better he was feeling, he bought in.“I would say Justin Verlander is very skeptical,” Wolforth said. “He’s not cynical. He’s very skeptical.
“I just think [Tommy John surgery] rebooted him,” Park said. “Now, he’s starting the second journey almost, like the 2.0.”
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