Giants' Justin Verlander free agent contract cost revealed after retirement decision

Justin Verlander didn't want his baseball career to end in 2025.

He made clear late in the season with the San Francisco Giants that he wouldn't be retiring. Now he just has to figure out what's next on the diamond.

Verlander is a free agent, and he's coming off a season in which he got off to a very slow start but turned it around by the end.

The Giants paid him $15 million for 2025. ESPN's Kiley McDaniel projects that Verlander will get $13 million on a one-year deal for 2026.

"Verlander signed a one-year, $15 million deal with the Giants last year, and they got what they paid for: He was even a bit better in 2025 than 2024 by some measures," McDaniel writes. "I assume he'll get a little less this year, though he could also get the same contract again."

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Verlander will turn 43 years old on February 20.

Yes, he's a future Hall of Famer, but he's also getting to the point where it's hard to know if he'll be able to keep getting hitters out for much longer.

It'd actually make some sense for the Giants to keep him around. They don't have the deepest rotation, and Verlander likely fits best at this point on a team trying to contend but not an inner-circle contender.

There's also a case to be made for Verlander returning to his original Detroit Tigers.

A number of other clubs will likely inquire, too.

Verlander will pitch somewhere in 2026, and it's all about figuring out where that might be.

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