{"id":120908,"date":"2025-11-14T16:38:30","date_gmt":"2025-11-14T16:38:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908"},"modified":"2025-11-14T16:38:30","modified_gmt":"2025-11-14T16:38:30","slug":"astros-bombshell-nightengale-drops-verlander-reunion-nuke-from-playoff-agony-to-unstoppable-empire-reborn-%f0%9f%92%a5%f0%9f%9a%80","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908","title":{"rendered":"Astros Bombshell: Nightengale Drops Verlander Reunion Nuke \u2013 From Playoff Agony to Unstoppable Empire Reborn! \ud83d\udca5\ud83d\ude80"},"content":{"rendered":"<article id=\"article-3596764\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/wp.clutchpoints.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Justin-Verlander-cover.jpg?w=1200\" alt=\"San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Justin Verlander (35) tips his cap after recording his 3500th career strikeout during the first inning against the Washington Nationals at Oracle Park.\" \/>Longtime pitcher Justin Verlander is coming off a subpar season with the San Francisco Giants. A sign that the 20-year veteran&#8217;s career may be coming to a close. But does he have time for one more go around, this time with the Houston Astros?<\/p>\n<p>On Friday, baseball writer Bob Nightengale of USA Today predicted that Verlander would\u00a0return to Houston when discussing possible trades and free-agent targets. It was with the Astros that Verlander won two World Series titles, a Cy Young Award, and also has a home near the spring training complex in Jupiter, Florida.<\/p>\n<p>Presently, Verlander is a free agent after playing one year with the Giants. In January, Verlander signed a one-year $15 million contract with San Francisco. Altogether, he finished the year with a 4-11 record and a 3.85 ERA along with 137 strikeouts.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, the Giants finished the season with an 81-81 record and missed the playoffs. Conversely, the Astros finished 87-75 and in second place in the AL West, but missed the playoffs for the first time since 2016.<\/p>\n<p>Verlander is a three-time Cy Young Award winner and a nine-time MLB All-Star. In 2011, he won the pitching triple crown with the Detroit Tigers. He led the AL with 24 wins, a 2.40 ERA, and 250 strikeouts.<\/p>\n<p>Currently, Verlander has 266 wins, a 3.32 ERA, and 3,553 strikeouts.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Justin Verlander became a winner with the Astros<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>It was during his time in Houston that Verlander solidified his greatness. In 2019 and 2022, he won two out of his three Cy Young Awards. Also, in 2017 and 2022, he was part of two World Series winning teams.<\/p>\n<p>It was also during that stretch where he captured his 300th win and 3,000th strikeout. Plus, Verlander threw his third career no-hitter on Sept. 1, 2019 in a 2-0 win against the Toronto Blue Jays. Also during one game, Verlander secured a career high 15 strikeouts against the Milwauke Brewers in June 2019.<\/p>\n<p>Overall, Verlander achieved a 2.41 ERA in 302 innings and 388 strikeouts during his tenure in Houston.<\/p>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The legendary baseball writer foresees a potential reunion between the Astros and one of the best pitchers of his time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":120909,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[287,742,44],"class_list":["post-120908","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb","tag-houston-astros","tag-justin-verlander","tag-mlb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Astros Bombshell: Nightengale Drops Verlander Reunion Nuke \u2013 From Playoff Agony to Unstoppable Empire Reborn! \ud83d\udca5\ud83d\ude80 - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Astros Bombshell: Nightengale Drops Verlander Reunion Nuke \u2013 From Playoff Agony to Unstoppable Empire Reborn! \ud83d\udca5\ud83d\ude80 - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The legendary baseball writer foresees a potential reunion between the Astros and one of the best pitchers of his time.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-11-14T16:38:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Rinrin-59.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"XuanTan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"XuanTan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908\",\"name\":\"Astros Bombshell: Nightengale Drops Verlander Reunion Nuke \u2013 From Playoff Agony to Unstoppable Empire Reborn! \ud83d\udca5\ud83d\ude80 - NEWS USA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Rinrin-59.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-14T16:38:30+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-11-14T16:38:30+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Rinrin-59.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Rinrin-59.jpg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":1000},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Astros Bombshell: Nightengale Drops Verlander Reunion Nuke \u2013 From Playoff Agony to Unstoppable Empire Reborn! \ud83d\udca5\ud83d\ude80\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\",\"name\":\"NEWS USA\",\"description\":\"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06\",\"name\":\"XuanTan\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"XuanTan\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=2\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Astros Bombshell: Nightengale Drops Verlander Reunion Nuke \u2013 From Playoff Agony to Unstoppable Empire Reborn! \ud83d\udca5\ud83d\ude80 - NEWS USA","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Astros Bombshell: Nightengale Drops Verlander Reunion Nuke \u2013 From Playoff Agony to Unstoppable Empire Reborn! \ud83d\udca5\ud83d\ude80 - NEWS USA","og_description":"The legendary baseball writer foresees a potential reunion between the Astros and one of the best pitchers of his time.","og_url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908","og_site_name":"NEWS USA","article_published_time":"2025-11-14T16:38:30+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1000,"height":1000,"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Rinrin-59.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"XuanTan","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"XuanTan","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908","name":"Astros Bombshell: Nightengale Drops Verlander Reunion Nuke \u2013 From Playoff Agony to Unstoppable Empire Reborn! \ud83d\udca5\ud83d\ude80 - NEWS USA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Rinrin-59.jpg","datePublished":"2025-11-14T16:38:30+00:00","dateModified":"2025-11-14T16:38:30+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Rinrin-59.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Rinrin-59.jpg","width":1000,"height":1000},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=120908#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Astros Bombshell: Nightengale Drops Verlander Reunion Nuke \u2013 From Playoff Agony to Unstoppable Empire Reborn! \ud83d\udca5\ud83d\ude80"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/","name":"NEWS USA","description":"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06","name":"XuanTan","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"XuanTan"},"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=2"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120908","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=120908"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120908\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":120910,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120908\/revisions\/120910"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/120909"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=120908"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=120908"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=120908"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}