Verlander strongly considered joining Blue Jays, Yankees last offseason

Before deciding to re-sign with the Houston Astros this past offseason, Justin Verlander seriously contemplated joining two AL East clubs.

Verlander admitted deals with the New York Yankees and, in particular, the Toronto Blue Jays were on the table before he signed a one-year, $25-million contract in December to remain in Texas.

"Houston was at the top of the list. As negotiations started going, they kind of fell off. Some other teams really started to show a lot of interest," the 39-year-old told ESPN's Jeff Passan.

"I would say that the leader was probably Toronto. They were great. And I talked to George (Springer) a bunch. They were very proactive to the point that when I signed with Houston, I made sure to let them know that I appreciated it all.

"Ultimately, when it came down to it, Houston had the same offer. It was all kind of ballpark between them and Toronto, and New York was kind of always just a step behind."

Verlander only threw six innings in 2020-21 after undergoing Tommy John surgery but is authoring another virtuoso campaign so far this season. The two-time Cy Young winner owns an 8-2 record with a 1.94 ERA and 8.92 K/9 across 12 starts for the AL West-leading Astros.