Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Starting pitcher Justin Verlander is looking for a similar deal to the one Max Scherzer signed with the New York Mets in free agency last winter.

That’s according to Houston Astros owner Jim Crane, who also made it clear that he’s still hopeful of re-signing the veteran pitcher, despite the fact that Verlander turned down a $25 million contract option in order to hit the open market and become a free agent.

Scherzer reset the pitcher market last offseason when he signed a blockbuster three-year, $130 million contract with the Mets, a deal that carries an average annual value of $43.3 million. For context, Scherzer has the highest average annual value of any player currently in baseball.

According to Crane, Verlander would like to belong in that upper echelon of monster AAV’s and he is determined to land a very similar deal to that of Scherzer’s this offseason. The two-time Cy Young Award winner has a chance of earning himself one last lucrative pay day given that starting pitching is at a premium in Major League Baseball, coupled with the fact that he’s still pitching at a very high level.

Verlander went 18-4 with a stellar 1.75 ERA in 2022 with 185 strikeouts in 175.0 innings pitched with a 5.9 WAR and a 0.829 WHIP, putting him firmly in contention for a third  Cy Young Award. He also pitched a gem against the Yankees in the ACLS, striking out 11 and giving up just one earned run on three hits. The righty boasts a career 3.24 ERA.

According to our own Michael Mayer, the Mets are players in the Verlander sweepstakes and see the ace as a legit backup option should Jacob deGrom opt to sign elsewhere in free agency. Verlander still has plenty left in the tank given his exploits on the mound in 2022, and he would provide an elite 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation alongside Scherzer.

However, if what Crane says is true, the Mets would be committing serious money to two pitchers north of 37-years-old, and both contracts could age horribly quickly. You can get away with paying one aging pitcher big money, but two could really hurt any team down the road, regardless of financial resources. So, while there is real interest in Verlander from the Mets, that may not go any further if the veteran starter really is looking for a similar contract to Scherzer’s.