In Spring Training of 2015, Texas Rangers starter Yu Darvish began to experience soreness in his right triceps. He underwent an MRI the following day, eventually to reveal that his right elbow had a torn ulnar collateral ligament, requiring Tommy John surgery.
Darvish missed the entire 2015 season and the first half of 2016 before returning and making 17 starts for the Rangers, going 7-5 with a 3.41 ERA and 1.12 WHIP in 17 starts to close out the year. This season was then a bit of an unusual one for Darvish.
In 22 starts with Texas, he posted career-worsts in ERA (4.01), FIP (3.99) and strikeouts per nine innings (9.7) while going 6-9 in 137 innings of work. In part due to his expiring contract, the Rangers traded him to the Los Angeles Dodgers just before the non-waiver trade deadline.
He was much better in his time with Los Angeles, posting a 3.44 ERA, 3.38 FIP and 1.15 WHIP with 61 strikeouts to 13 walks, going 4-3 in nine starts.
It appears Darvish may have still been feeling the effects of his Tommy John surgery, as in a recent interview with Mike Piellucci of Sports Illustrated, Darvish said it won’t be until 2018 that he will return to his pre-surgery form:
“Next season,” he declares. “That’s when I’ll feel close to where I was before the surgery.”
While Darvish was supposed to be the acquisition to put the Dodgers over the top, that didn’t end up being the case as he logged just 3.1 innings over two starts and allowed nine runs (eight earned) without recording a strikeout in the World Series.
He was tabbed with losses in Game 3 and a decisive Game 7. Darvish’s future with the organization remains in question as he is currently a free agent and could command a lucrative contract on the free agent market.
If what Darvish is saying about not being fully healthy until 2018 is true, then he may be worth the contract, as he was one of the best starters in all of baseball before his surgery.
But the Dodgers may be unwilling to dish out the contract Darvish is looking for, and the Minnesota Twins continue to show plenty of interest.
