The Winter Meetings have come and gone with a plethora of high-profile free agents still searching for a team for the 2018 season. Among the most prominent names include Los Angeles Dodgers midseason acquisition Yu Darvish, who’s expected to sign one of the largest contracts of the offseason despite his recent World Series struggles.
Darvish is just one of two premiere free-agent starting pitchers available, along with Jake Arrieta, most recently of the Chicago Cubs. The market for each respective arm hasn’t quite materialized to this point, but that could soon change.
Per Bruce Levine of 670 The Score, the Cubs have landed a meeting with Darvish in his hometown of Dallas, Texas:
Cubs Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer landed in Dallas this afternoon. Free agent Yu Darvish meeting is likely destination for the two execs.
— Bruce Levine (@MLBBruceLevine) December 18, 2017
The Cubs have focused on improving its pitching staff this offseason, and that was evident with the signings of Brandon Morrow and Steve Cishek to shore up the bullpen.
Chicago has also inked Tyler Chatwood to a three-year deal and is looking to further upgrade its starting rotation with an ace-caliber pitcher. Darvish would more than fit that bill, but the Minnesota Twins are also expected to make a strong a play for the 31-year-old.
While Darvish has previously stated his desire to re-sign with the Dodgers, Los Angeles hasn’t been linked to the right-hander all that much this winter, given their difficult luxury tax situation.
But after Saturday’s blockbuster trade with the Atlanta Braves that shed millions of short-term salary, the Dodgers could very well re-enter the fold for Darvish should they choose. General manager Farhan Zaidi revealed last week that active discussions with him were taking place.
