10/11/2006 10:32 AM ET Verlander: Power pitching for the Tigers MLBPLAYERS.com

Tigers right-hander Justin Verlander has always idolized Nolan Ryan. (AP)

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Ever since all those 100-mph gun readings we had at Yankee Stadium in Game 2 of the American League Division Series, I've been asked a lot of questions about triple-digit velocity figures.

I never knew how consistently hard I threw until I got to the Majors because this is really the only level where you have a radar gun reading on the scoreboard that you can see every pitch. It's kind of exciting. Sometimes I have an urge to turn around and look at it during games, but I try not to get involved with that too much.

The first time I was aware I could reach 100 mph was in my junior year at Old Dominion in 2004, the year I got drafted. After a game, the pitcher who had been charting my pitches came up and told me I had hit 99 mph on the gun, which was the highest his gun could go. I looked at every one of the scouts and they had 100 mph, so that was pretty exciting.

I've always idolized Nolan Ryan. I watched Roger Clemens a lot. There are a handful of guys out there that I enjoyed watching. I really didn't have the opportunity to watch too much baseball when I was younger because I was playing a whole lot. But whenever I had the opportunity to see those guys, I would. Even now, when an ESPN Classic game comes on with Nolan Ryan, I'm glued.

Pitching up in the strike zone is something I'm still kind of learning about. I'm still learning how to pitch, and I will be for the rest of my career. Pitching up in the zone is something that I think I could use effectively, but I've still got plenty of room for improvement in that area. It's something I've been working on.

Last year at this time, I was sitting at home. I had just bought a place in Florida, so I was getting that situation settled. Now we have a chance to get to the World Series. We've taken a pretty big step this year.

It's been rewarding, too. I've got a great following in my home town of Goochland, Va. My father called to tell me there's this barbecue stand in Goochland that says, "Good luck Justin!" on the marquee outside. It's good to see the old faithful showing their faces out there.

Justin Verlander, a finalist for the Players Choice Awards for both Outstanding Rookie and Outstanding Pitcher in the American League, went 17-9 with a 3.63 ERA and 124 strikeouts over 186 innings for the Tigers this season. The 23-year-old right-hander is scheduled to pitch in Game 2 of the American League Championship Series on Wednesday night.

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