We all know professional athletes have weird rituals and superstitions. For whatever reason, that is especially true for baseball players. When a starting pitcher tells us he loads up on In-N-Out Burger or eats fast food the night before a start, we typically take their word for it. But just in case you didn’t believe Justin Verlander when he said he eats Taco Bell the night before every one of his starts, the Tigers ace proved it via his Twitter account on Wednesday night — the night before Detroit’s opener against Boston.

The fact that Verlander can eat that stuff and get through a baseball game the following day is more impressive to me than watching him throw 100 mph in the ninth inning.

H/T Big League Stew
Photo credit: Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

When you win the A.L. Cy Young and have your name thrown into the discussion for A.L. MVP, this is the stuff that happens. Fear not, Tigers fans. This isn’t some sort of lame money-making scheme. According to the Detroit Free Press, sales from Justin Verlander’s “Fastball Flakes” cereal benefit VA Hospitals in Detroit and Ann Arbor. The cereal is being sold through PLB Sports (PLBSports.com), which is a Pittsburgh-based company that makes athlete-endorsed products that sold for charity.

You should buy Fastball Flakes if you’re looking to contribute to a good cause, but don’t confuse them with a cereal like Wheaties or anything like that. Eating these flakes will not guarantee that you can throw 101 mph in the 9th inning.

H/T Hardball Talk

Last season, Justin Verlander brought us one of the most dominant seasons we’ve seen from a pitcher in recent history.  Verlander would have liked a better result in the playoffs, but he mowed through the entire league during the regular season and placed himself in the MVP discussion.  In an era where pitchers rarely are able to pitch deep enough into games to win 20 games in a season, you might wonder how Verlander did it.  In an appearance on Conan O’Brien’s show Wednesday night, the Tigers ace revealed one of his secrets: Taco Bell.  Check out this video that It’s Always Sunny in Detroit passed along:

Conan read my mind with the diarrhea comment.  I can’t remember a time when I’ve eaten Taco Bell and haven’t had to risk getting a speeding ticket to make it home without a crisis situation occurring in my car, let alone playing a baseball game the following day.  That being said, Verlander is not the first MLB starter to have a fast food addiction.  Remember Tim Lincecum’s insane In-N-Out Burger order?  Maybe the rest of us need to give saturated fat and calories more of a chance.

They say the car you drive indicates who you are as a person. I say that statement has some truth but it isn’t always correct. One thing about a car that does tell you a lot about a person is their license plate. In the case of Justin Verlander, the Tigers found out his rookie year that he was a cocky mofo. The latest edition of Sporting News Magazine (with Kansas on the cover — we know how that turned out), features a lengthy conversation with Verlander and a sidebar written by Tigers pitcher Jeremy Bonderman who is best friends with Verlander. Bonderman shared this classic story about Verlander:

“His first year with the Tigers, he showed up to spring training and the license plate on his car said “BRNGN IT” — oh, man, we rode him hard for it. He really got an earful from Kenny Rogers and a bunch of our other veterans. That’s one of those things that, as a rookie, you just don’t do.”

Imagine that, here comes some kid with a career record of 21-18 for Old Dominion and no wins to his name at the Major League level, showing up to camp letting everyone know he’s “Bringing it.” Five years, 65 wins, two All-Star games, and 746 strikeouts later, there’s no doubt that Verlander is bringing it. You also get the sense that Verlander’s very serious about his stated goal of making the Hall of Fame. As long as his arm doesn’t fall off you have to figure his chances are pretty fair. For another story about that, Verlander only needs to turn to his buddy Bonderman.

Of course, this story wouldn’t be complete without a picture of the infamous car. Based on some searching around the net, I believe this is it:

Classic!