Houston Astros ace Justin Verlander is having one of the best seasons of his MLB career. The Astros star is aging like a fine wine. Year after year, he is only getting better in his game. Even at 39 years old, Verlander is the first-choice pitcher for the Astros, which speaks volumes about his game.

But was he the same pitcher during his time at the Detroit Tigers? And if not, then why? Well, to answer this question, Justin Verlander has only one and a very sweet answer, his wife Kate Upton. Ever since she came into his life, Verlander’s career took a turn.

Notably, after dating for a few years, Verlander and Upton got married in 2017. This year (2017) itself changed the life of Verlander. From an ordinary pitcher of a mid-table team, he became the World Champion and played an instrumental role in the Astros’ title-winning run in the 2017 season.

Justin Verlander credited Kate Upton for reviving his MLB career

Debuted in the 2005 season for the Tigers, Verlander failed to leave his mark in MLB for over ten years. He even had a few of his worst seasons during that time. But ever since he started dating the American model and actress Kate Upton, his career started getting better. 

In his own words, Upton was not only his life partner but a constant pillar of support who also worked as a therapist for him. He even suffered from depression for a while. But it was Upton who brought his life on the track.

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“Who knows if I’m even here if it wasn’t for her? She was instrumental in me not …like jumping off a bridge,” Verlander said in an old interview. “I was depressed and kind of just upset at the world and trying to hide my own stuff. I don’t like to talk to people about being hurt. As athletes, you’re not supposed to. It’s an excuse… But she was someone I could talk to. I mean, basically a therapist.”

Notably, there was a time when Verlander’s ERA crossed the 4.50 mark in the 2014 season. And now, in the current season, he is at the top of the ERA leaderboard in the entire MLB. The Astros ace has 49 strikeouts in 51.2 innings in the eight games he has started.

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Do you think Kate Upton is the reason for the massive transformation of Justin Verlander in MLB?