Justin Verlander

Justin Verlander is in the midst of a wildly inconsistent year, especially by his lofty standards, but his game off the diamond is clearly not lacking. 

For the uninitiated, the Detroit Tigers right-hander is dating Kate Upton, the two-time Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover model, and during Monday's game against the New York Yankees, he showed why: 

Poised to win the American League Central for the fourth consecutive year, the Detroit Tigers' fortunes this October will rest squarely on the right arm of one Justin Brooks Verlander. 

Detroit Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander took a no-decision in Friday night's contest vs. the Houston Astros, leaving him without a win for the month of June and winless for the first time in any full calendar month of his MLB career, as reported by The Oakland Press' Matthew Mowery on Twitter.

There are times in life when one must stare fear in the face and give it a big fat kiss.

This was one of those times for Detroit Tigers outfielder Torii Hunter. Justin Verlander dared his teammate to pucker up and lay one on the gator, and Hunter came through in the clutch. However, Hunter captioned the photo "#stillfearit," so there remains a healthy respect for the animal. 

After a dramatic two-game split in Boston, the Detroit Tigers return home for a crucial Game 3 in the first of three consecutive games to be played at Comerica Park.

Despite a late-game collapse in which Detroit allowed five Boston runs over the final two innings of Sunday’s Game 2 loss, a combined one-hitter from Tigers’ pitchers in Game 1 gives Detroit a theoretical chance to win the ALCS at home.

Last week, we took a look as to what players might not be with the Miami Marlins in 2014. 

Today, based on who we think will still be here, we're going to take a look as to what the Marlins starting lineup will be next season.

Old school baseball. It means no batting gloves, choking up on the bat and not being afraid to get your uniform dirty. Over the years, the game of baseball has lost some of that "tough-as-nails" mentality, as players hide behind body armor and pitch counts.

Justin Verlander should most definitely be featured in the 2013 MLB All-Star festivities, just as long as he never picks up a bat. 

Common logic aside, the Detroit Tigers ace flirted with the notion of appearing in the Chris Berman bark-fest known as the Home Run Derby with the following tweet:

It was a big day in MLB for teams extending their star players.

And all these extensions will have a direct impact on the Boston Red Sox moving forward.