For the first time in nearly two decades as a major league pitcher, Justin Verlander didn\'t take an offseason break from throwing.
He needed to keep a baseball in his hand so his shoulder would cooperate. He needed the routine to maintain a rhythm.
\"I\'ve always been somebody who, I set down the ball, I don\'t pick it up again for a few months and then I\'ve always been very lucky that I just pick it up and start throwing,\" Verlander said Monday. \"Well, at 41, that caught up with me. So that was an adjustment that I\'ve made that I feel is paying big dividends already.\"
Via ESPN.com