Justin Verlander’s final start ends with daughter making pitching change

A.J. Hinch has made plenty of pitching changes, but Saturday, he gave this one to someone else.

After Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman Brandon Lowe popped out in the sixth inning Saturday, the Detroit Tigers manager signaled to the stands and Justin Verlander's daughter, Genevieve, sprinted out to the mound to get her father.

Justin Verlander was already crying as she closed the gap to the mound quickly. He bent down and wrapped her up in a hug that lasted about 15 seconds as the crowd around him rose. When he stood back up, he took his daughter's hand and walked off the mound for a final time.

It was the final scene of a farewell that Verlander and the Tigers had been building toward since he announced his retirement in July.

After two decades that took him from Detroit to Houston, New York and San Francisco, the 43-year-old came home for one last start, his first at Comerica Park in a Tiger uniform since he was traded in 2017 and only his second of this injury-wrecked season. He leaves as one of the defining pitchers of his generation: three Cy Young Awards, 2011 MVP, Rookie of the Year, three no-hitters…

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/sports/