Yu Darvish was acquired by the Los Angeles Dodgers at the non-waiver trade deadline in 2017 to be a difference-maker come the postseason, but he ultimately found himself receiving the bulk of the blame for the team falling short to the Houston Astros in the World Series.
Darvish was mired in the worst stretch of his career at the time of being traded by the Texas Rangers and still had some trouble with consistency as the regular season drew to a close. He righted the ship come October, putting together strong performances in the National League Division Series and Championship Series.
But his two starts in the World Series — Games 3 and 7 — left plenty to be desired. Darvish recorded just five outs in each outing and allowed four earned runs in both games (nine runs overall).
Darvish was a victim of the spending freeze in free agency but ultimately joined the Chicago Cubs on a six-year, $126 million contract. He placed plenty of significance heading into a start at Dodger Stadium, then spoke with confidence he could move on from personal regret after an impressive effort.
With the Dodgers and Cubs having concluded their regular-season series, Darvish is looking forward to a potential matchup in the postseason, according to Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times:
“I would like for that to happen,” Darvish said. “Of course. The Dodgers will be there if you think about it. If we win, we will have the chance to play them in the playoffs. I would like for that to happen.”
While fans were not welcoming of the right-hander and would potentially be even more vociferous under higher stakes, Darvish noted other factors that have him open to pitching at Dodger Stadium:
“I would,” he said. “The climate is perfect, too. The weather is always good here. And they’re the strongest team. If I hold them, it would mean that much more, right?”
As it stands, the Dodgers are a virtual lock to reach the postseason via a seventh consecutive National League West title. The Cubs are jockeying with the Milwaukee Brewers atop the NL Central and are in position to have the Wild Card Game to fall back on.
The Dodgers boast a comfortable lead for the best record in the NL, which would align them to face the winner of the Wild Card Game. Thus, having previously met in the NLCS in 2016 and 2017, the Dodgers and Cubs could very well match up in the NLDS this time around.
