Korean baseball organization SSG Landers announces signing of right-hander to one-year contract Drew Verhagen 2026 season. VerHagen will receive $800,000 guaranteed ($750,000 salary, $50,000 signing bonus), with another $100,000 in contract incentives available to the 35-year-old right-hander.
Verhagen is an eight-season MLB veteran with a 4.98 ERA in 281 2/3 innings with the Tigers (2014-19) and Cardinals (2022-23), primarily as a long reliever with a handful of starts. He also has extensive pitching experience in Japan, as Verhagen pitched with Nippon Professional Baseball’s Nippon Ham Fighters in 2020-21 and the past two seasons.
Overall, Verhagen had a 3.68 ERA, 23.7% strikeout rate, and 6.65% walk rate in 283 1/3 innings with the Fighters. However, his most recent season was his least successful in the NPB. VerHagen posted a just 6.08 ERA in 26 2/3 frames with the Fighters in 2025 and spent most of the season in the Fighters’ minor league affiliate.
Verhagen will now look to turn a new leaf in a new league and a new country. He will occupy one of the Fighters’ roster allocations for foreign-born pitchers, essentially replacing Drew Anderson (He will return to Major League Baseball on a one-year deal with Detroit).
