Yu Darvish was twice given an opportunity to help the Los Angeles Dodgers make their final step toward winning a World Series for the first time since 1988, and in each of his starts against the Houston Astros only managed to record five outs.
Darvish’s struggles in Game 3 allowed the Astros to win a pivotal swing game, and his subpar performance in Game 7 put Los Angeles in a 5-0 deficit they never recovered from. There were strong implications Darvish tipped his pitches.
So the 31-year-old went into the offseason with consecutive starts he quickly wished to forget. Furthermore, Darvish is a free agent, and there’s some thought the outings may have impacted his market.
While recently walking in the greater Los Angeles area, Darvish was approached by TMZ Sports, and he apologized for his performance in the World Series.
Prior to his costly starts in the World Series, Darvish shined in the National League Division Series and Championship Series. In two combined starts, he went 2-0 with a 1.59 ERA while holding opponents to a .195/.233/.341 batting line.
The trip to the postseason was the third of Darvish’s career. He started for the Texas Rangers in the American League Wild Card Game in 2012, then pitched in the ALDS in 2016. Darvish was tabbed with the loss in each of those outings.
While the Dodgers may have reservations in potentially re-signing the free agent, in part due to his age, Darvish expressed a desire to remain with the club.
He credited the time spent with Los Angeles for helping him rediscover a ‘passion’ for the sport that began to wane since making his MLB debut in 2012.
