AJ Hinch’s memory of Justin Verlander says a lot about the way he manages
Justin Verlander’s career ended in 2026, and his final stop brought him back to where it all began: the Detroit Tigers. It also put him back alongside AJ Hinch, the manager he knew from three seasons with the Houston Astros from 2017 to 2019, a stretch that included a World Series title.
Hinch recently shared a moment that cuts right to the heart of how he operates. On the “Dirt From the Dugout” podcast, he said he once had to send Verlander back to the mound during a Spring Training drill after a rep went wrong between the pitcher and first baseman.
“I remember the first time I ever had Justin Verlander on the mound in a PFP (pitcher’s fielding practice) in Spring Training, and that rep that gets messed up between pitcher and first baseman. And I’ve got to reset them.
And I’ve got to send Verlander back to the mound. I’m in my late 30s, early 40s as a manager, and I’ve got this future Hall of Famer and he screwed up a play and I got to make him do it again,” Hinch recalled in an appearance on the “Dirt From the Dugout” podcast.
A.J. Hinch once had to send Justin Verlander back to the mound to redo a botched spring training rep. Where’d he learn that?
— Dirt From the Dugout (@dirtfromthedug) November 5, 2026
His dad, when he was 16. “It’s not a punishment. It’s a standard.” ⚾ pic.twitter.com/lN6OISJgzN
He tied that moment back to something he learned long before he was managing in the big leagues.
“That was learned in Midwest City, Oklahoma as a 16-year-old kid throwing the ball away in infield practice and my dad and my head coach making me reset and do it again until I did it right. That’s something I think that everybody can learn from.
It’s not a punishment. It’s a standard.”
Verlander’s career didn’t reach that level by tuning out coaching, and Hinch’s story underscores how willing he was to keep working even when he had every reason to act above it.
For the Tigers, that kind of authority in the clubhouse is part of why Hinch is trusted to lead. The question now is whether that approach can turn into postseason success down the line.
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