DETROIT — When Justin Verlander is almost certainly inducted into the Hall of Fame, very likely joining Miguel Cabrera, their Tigers glory days will be recalled. But when it comes to individual bragging rights, Verlander will own them.
Cabrera was hitless in two at-bats Sunday afternoon against Verlander, who earned his 254th career victory in a 17-4 Astros triumph at Comerica Park. Cabrera took a called third strike in the second inning and grounded into a forceout in the third, leaving him 0-for-5 for his career against his longtime friend and teammate.
Still, Cabrera would have a memorable moment in the eighth inning, hitting a three-run homer off Phil Maton that was No. 510 for his career. The blast broke a tie with former teammate Gary Sheffield for 26th place in AL/NL history.
Cabrera declined a postgame interview request, but Verlander summed it up well:
“The cool moment between [us] is the acknowledgement, the hat tip from me to him and him to me,” Verlander said. “Then we go about competing. But those moments don’t happen too often, where you’ve got two guys who have played together as long as him and I have.
“You have a moment where everybody knows it’s Miggy’s last season, and the crowd, I thought, did a great job acknowledging it and taking a moment. … A hat tip says a million things.”
Cabrera and Verlander were teammates from 2008-17 until Verlander was traded to Houston. “Miggy” and “Ver” were the dynamic faces of the franchise — winning American League MVP honors in three consecutive seasons.
Verlander won it in 2011, when he also was the Cy Young Award winner while going 24-5 with a 2.40 ERA. Cabrera took it home in 2012 — when he was the Triple Crown winner by batting .330 with 44 homers and 139 RBIs — and 2013.
“I’m just thankful for the time I had to be his teammate all of those years,” Verlander told MLB.com. “He was one of the best hitters to ever play the game, and I was there for a front-row seat for the glory days. I appreciated that.”
His favorite memory of Cabrera came after he was pulled by Tigers manager Jim Leyland after winning the Triple Crown in the 2012 regular-season finale in Kansas City.
“I had gotten him a watch — he probably still doesn’t even have it — but that’s not the important part,” Verlander said. “In the locker room, me, him and Prince Fielder had cigars for congratulations. We sat there and smoked a cigar, and we were just shootin’ the [stuff] with him.
“I was like, ‘Man, do you know what you just did?’ It was pretty freaking incredible. It was just me, him and Prince, smoking a cigar.”
Cabrera was asked about that celebration scene prior to Sunday’s game.
“That was a special moment, man,” Cabrera told MLB.com.
He smiled when asked if he still had the watch.
“Yes, I still have it,” Cabrera said. “He put the three crowns on it. It’s nice.”
The Tigers have a tote board along the brick wall in left-center that changes with each added hit (Cabrera is up to 3,151) and home run. And the numbers continued increasing while he rounded the bases Sunday on his homer, smiling and conversing with second baseman Jose Altuve, his good friend from their hometown of Maracay, Venezuela.
Cabrera was 0-for-3 with a strikeout against Verlander in their only previous meeting on Aug. 21, 2019, in Houston.
“I think Miggy facing his old friend was cool to see two guys go at it,” said Tigers manager A.J. Hinch. “Like I said before the game, soak the moment up and remember it — especially Tigers fans who are emotionally attached to both guys.”
“We’ve had a lot of great memories together on and off the field,” Verlander said. “I love that guy, and I just have so much respect for him. I’m glad A.J. put him in the lineup. I’m glad we had that moment. … I’m glad to have the opportunity to compete against him in his final year. It’s a memory I’ll always remember.”