It took the first half of the DMBL season but Justin Verlander finally gained entry into the vaunted 200-win club.
It wasn't pretty but Verlander overcame 6 walks (3 of which were neutralized by double plays), scattering 3 runs and 5 hits over 7 innings as Merrill Creek pummeled Hoboken, 12-4, to end the first half of the season Thursday night. He improved to 4-10 on the season, winning for the first time since May 14 - a span of 7 starts, in which he took the loss 6 times.
Verlander is now an even 200-160 in his career (.555). He becomes the 7th pitcher to reach 200 wins but also the 6th to reach 160 losses. He'll have to improve on this second-half win total to catch Curt Schilling (205) at No. 4, Pedro Martinez (207), and Roger Clemens (211).
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At the halfway mark of the season, Verlander has 479 career starts, which ranks 4th all time, but is not likely to catch Clayton Kershaw (490 and counting) and Greg Maddux (497) this season.
It's been a strangely un-Verlander like season for the 41-year-old. In 18 starts, he's just 4-10 with a ghastly 5.55 ERA (which would be a career-worst by far) and mediocre 1.38 WHIP. He's recorded 94 strikeouts over 107 innings.
The 10 losses are the most since Verlander went 10-13 for Hillsborough in 2019 and matched his loss totals from 2016 and 2017 when he went 13-10 and 15-10, with Marietta and Livingston, respectively.
It's a far cry from last season when he was a unanimous selection for the Ben McDonald Award, going 18-4 with a 1.98 ERA (both league highs) and 1.01 WHIP while striking out 224 in 213 1/3 innings.
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