The St. Louis Cardinals have signed 31-year-old, right-handed reliever Drew VerHagen to a two-year deal worth $5.5 million, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports. VerHagen is the first free agent to sign a contract in MLB after the lockout ended.
The Detroit Tigers drafted VerHagen in the fourth round of the 2012 MLB draft. The reliever made his MLB debut in 2014 and appeared in 127 games for the Tigers from 2014 to 2019. He did make eight starts with the Tigers, however, and could be an option as a spot starter in St. Louis.
After his time with Detroit, he signed a contract to play in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball league. During his two seasons in Japan VerHagen pitched a total of 207.2 innings with an ERA of 3.51. Enjoy these highlights from his time in Japan.
VerHagen has four pitches in his repertoire; fastball, slider, curveball, and changeup. The most impressive statistic is his career 53.9% groundball rate. For the 2021 season, this would have placed him 21st among qualified relievers in MLB. When paired with the St. Louis Cardinals' exceptional defense his path to success becomes clear.
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Featured image courtesy of Charlie Lyons-Pardue
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