NEW YORK — On Nov. 3, 2022, 39-year-old future Hall of Fame pitcher Justin Verlander secured his first World Series win. That it took until then was a nagging quirk in his otherwise storied career. In the final start of his third Cy Young Award-winning season, Verlander labored through five high-traffic innings against a Philadelphia Phillies team that had charmed the country as it rode an infectious hot streak from barely making the postseason to being all knotted up at two games apiece against the big, bad Houston Astros in the World Series.

But Verlander pitched well enough to put the Astros up in the series, and two days later, he and Houston won their second championship in six seasons together.

It seemed to mark the likely end of his time in Houston. Verlander declined the player option in his contract, making him a free agent, and the Astros are known for a principled approach that prevents most splurges. Amid the celebrations that would double as a sendoff, Verlander’s mother thanked manager Dusty Baker for leaving him in Game 5 long enough to check off that conspicuously lacking career achievement.