Justin Verlander’s ‘Diva Attitude’ Set Him On A Wrong Footing With Mets’ Max Scherzer

It seems Justin Verlander, a former pitcher for the New York Mets, ruffled some feathers in the Big Apple.

Justin Verlander’s ‘Diva Attitude’ Set Him On A Wrong Footing With Mets’ Max Scherzer

Verlander was a “diva,” a Mets player who wishes to remain unnamed told Mike Puma of the New York Post, and he “often complained about the Mets’ analytics department, which he deemed inferior to the one that served him in Houston.”

The much-hyped pitching rotation on the $364 million roster has a lot of issues.

The Mets’ supposed co-aces, Max Scherzer, 39, and Justin Verlander, 40, who were traded to the Rangers and the Astros, respectively, were the rotation’s faces. Both pitchers occasionally struggled on and off the field.

Additionally, the unnamed player informed Puma that Verlander “didn’t add to the team’s identity” and “was largely detached from teammates.”

Despite trying to improve their relationship, Verlander and Max Scherzer still had problems while they were teammates in New York, according to Puma. Verlander and Max Scherzer had a tense relationship while they were teammates on the Detroit Tigers from 2010 to 2014.

According to The Post’s Mike Puma, the atmosphere was different from that of last year’s rotation because Scherzer and Chris Bassitt were open to provide advice with the team’s other, younger pitchers.

However, the Mets let Bassitt to sign with the Blue Jays in the winter despite the team signing Verlander, Jose Quintana, and Kodai Senga.

Aside from their personal issues, Verlander and Scherzer mostly fell short of expectations this season. Each had their ups and downs before the Mets entered a sell-off mode.

Before being moved, Verlander made 16 starts with the Mets and had a 6-5 record, 3.15 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, and 81 strikeouts in 94.1 innings pitched. While at New York, Scherzer made 19 starts and had a 9-4 record, a 4.01 ERA, a 1.19 WHIP, and 121 strikeouts in 107.2 innings.

The Mets’ 2022 American League Cy Young Award winner, Verlander, missed Opening Day due to a teres major strain and did not pitch until May 4.

He also didn’t have a great start for the Mets when he did return to the mound, going 2-2 in May with a 4.80 ERA across five starts.

“We kind of got off on the wrong foot. Everything that could go wrong did early,” Verlander, as a member of the Astros, told reporters at Yankee Stadium on Aug. 3. “Even though we started playing some good baseball at times, we never really hit our stride where we were kind of banging on all cylinders. I can’t answer exactly why that is.”

The Mets’ failings have been a significant letdown because the team was supposed to be a title contender this year and had the largest payroll in baseball before the 2023 season.

With a 52-65 record and a fourth-place finish in the NL East, New York is now on pace to miss the postseason for the fourth time in the previous five years.

 

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