Justin Verlander has not been himself this season.

Even after manager Jim Leyland chose him as a personal pick for the A.L. All-Star team, and announcing that a flaw had been discovered in his mechanics that was to be corrected, he was pounded by the lowly Chicago White Sox Tuesday. He got through 7, giving up 12 hits and 5 earned runs, including two long-shots. He only struck out 3.

The White Sox, coming in with a dismal .296 OBP (good for 28th in the league) and having only scored 314 runs this season (good for 29th in the league) made mincemeat of Tigers pitching Tuesday, clocking 23 hits. Has Verlander been bad this year? Certainly not. I think the bullpen issues magnify Verlander’s struggles, but as Tigers fans, we have been spoiled for the past several years with his dominance on the mound every 5 days. It was must see TV every time he took the mound. Now, he appears to be just another part of a strong rotation. He still has an ERA that is only .3 higher than his career average. But not since May have we seen more than 10 K’s in an outing, and not since June 12th have we seen any more than 5 K’s. Four outings have also come with at least 5 earned  runs.

What do you think? Has Verlander lost his dominance, and will he ever be able to regain his form to be what he was in his MVP season a year ago? Max Scherzer has filled in admirably, but I think every fan is crossing their fingers that #35 will return to his old form to help carry this team down the stretch.