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Yu Darvish

Each MLB Team’s Players On WBC Rosters

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The World Baseball Classic is returning this year, the first time since 2017. The quadrennial event was supposed to take place in 2021 but was scuttled by the pandemic, now returning after a six-year absence. Rosters for the tournament were announced today and those can be found at this link. Here is a breakdown of which players from each MLB team are set to take participate. Quick caveat that this list is fluid and might be changed as more information becomes available.

Without further ado…

Angels

Astros

Athletics

Blue Jays

Braves

Brewers

Cardinals

Cubs

Diamondbacks

Dodgers

Giants

Guardians

Marlins

Mariners

Mets

Nationals

Orioles

Padres

Phillies

Pirates

Rangers

Rays

Red Sox

Reds

Rockies

Royals

Tigers

Twins

White Sox

Yankees

Sandy Alcantara Wins National League Cy Young Award

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Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara has won the National League Cy Young award, the Baseball Writers Association of America announced. It was a unanimous victory, with Alcantara receiving all 30 first place votes. He was followed in the voting by Max Fried of the Braves and Julio Urías of the Dodgers.

Alcantara has been the presumptive favorite for quite some time, and the unanimous voting serves as a particular testament to the caliber of season he put together. The right-hander easily lapped the field in innings, soaking up 228 2/3 frames that cleared second-place finisher Aaron Nola by 23 2/3. Alcantara and Nola were the only Senior Circuit pitchers to throw multiple complete games; Nola went the distance twice, while Alcantara did so six times. He also faced a league-leading 886 batters, with Nola’s 807 batters faced an extremely distant second.

That kind of throwback, workhorse mentality was part of what set Alcantara apart from the rest of the league, but he continued to perform brilliantly on a rate basis. Among NL starters with 100+ innings, he ranked fourth in ERA (2.28) and sixth in ground-ball percentage (53.4%). His 23.4% strikeout percentage was more good than elite, but he rarely issued free passes and kept the ball on the ground while consistently going deep into games.

Along the way, the 27-year-old earned the second All-Star nod of his career. Alcantara had posted an ERA between 3.00 and 4.00 in each of his first four seasons with the Fish to emerge as a top-of-the-rotation caliber arm. Miami inked him to a $56MM extension last offseason, a deal that extended their window of control through 2027. That seemed a strong move for general manager Kim Ng and her staff at the time, and it now stands as an absolute bargain with Alcantara cementing himself upon the game’s top handful of pitchers.

It’s the first Cy Young nod for the native of the Dominican Republic, who’d never previously appeared on an awards ballot. Fried and Urías each picked up some support for the second time. The Atlanta southpaw finished fifth in Cy Young balloting in 2020, while the L.A. hurler placed seventh last year. Both earned a top-three placement for the first time this year, with sub-2.50 ERA showings. Fried twirled 185 1/3 innings of 2.48 ball, while Urías led qualified starters with a 2.16 ERA.

Fried picked up 10 second-place votes, and Urías was the runner-up on seven ballots. Nola, Zac Gallen, Carlos Rodón, Corbin Burnes and Edwin Díaz were the other players to receive at least one second-place vote. Nola and Gallen placed fourth and fifth, respectively. Rodón, Burnes, Díaz, Yu Darvish, Kyle Wright, Logan Webb and Ryan Helsley were the other players to appear on a ballot.

Full voting breakdown available here.

Padres Interested In Extension Talks With Yu Darvish

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Yu Darvish is coming off his second quality season with the Padres, with his 2022 campaign representing a step beyond his solid 2021 numbers.  This season, Darvish posted a 3.10 ERA, an above-average 25.6% strikeout rate and an outstanding 4.8% walk rate over 194 2/3 innings, while continuing to post one of the best fastball spin rates of any pitcher in baseball.  Yesterday, the right-hander stepped up big in Game One of the NL Wild Card Series, allowing one run in seven innings in San Diego’s 7-1 win over the Mets.

Though Darvish turned 36 in August, the Padres have already seen enough to want to explore a contract extension with Darvish this offseason, according to Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune.  Darvish is entering the final year of his current deal — the six-year, $126MM free agent pact he signed with the Cubs prior to the 2018 season.

When triceps tendinitis limited Darvish to only 40 innings (of 4.95 ERA pitching) in 2018, there was already some concern in Wrigleyville that the signing could be a bust.  However, Darvish rebounded to post a 3.98 ERA over 178 2/3 innings in 2019, and his 2.01 ERA over 76 innings in the shortened 2020 season earned the righty a second-place finish in NL Cy Young Award voting.  As the Cubs were entering a rebuild period, they traded Darvish and catcher Victor Caratini to the Padres for a five-player package and some significant salary relief.

Other than the hip and back problems that resulted in a pair of brief IL stints late in the 2021 season, Darvish has been pretty healthy since that abbreviated 2018 campaign.  Only 10 pitchers threw more than 194 2/3 frames in 2022, and that total was also the second-highest innings count of Darvish’s 10 Major League seasons.  Of course, Darvish’s career workload doesn’t just include MLB, as he tossed 1268 1/3 innings in Nippon Professional Baseball before coming to North America and tossing 1488 regular-season innings.

It’s probably safe to assume that the Padres aren’t looking for another long-term pact for Darvish, and Acee notes that Darvish hasn’t given any indication about how much longer he wishes to keep playing.  However, adding another season (or even two) may fit into the club’s interest if they’re confident Darvish can keep producing into his late 30’s.  Mike Clevinger, Sean Manaea, and Nick Martinez are free agents this winter, but the Padres kept one major arm off the market when they inked Joe Musgrove to a five-year, $100MM extension back in August.  Musgrove, Darvish, and Blake Snell project as San Diego’s top three starters heading into 2023, though Darvish and Snell are both only under contract through next season.

Extending Darvish would give the Padres a bit more rotation security going forward, even if a new deal covered only 2024 or 2025.  San Diego exceeded the luxury tax threshold in both 2021 and 2022, but quite a bit of money will be off the books after the 2023 season, which is presumably when a Darvish extension would begin.  If a new deal overwrote the final year of Darvish’s current contract, that could give the Padres some more immediate luxury tax breathing room for 2023.  Darvish is owed $18MM in 2023 but his tax number is $21MM, the average of $126MM divided over six seasons.

This Date In Transaction History: Cubs Sign Yu Darvish

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On February 13th, 2018 the Cubs officially announced a six-year, $126MM agreement with free agent Yu Darvish. After splitting the 2017 season between the Rangers and Dodgers, Darvish was the top free agent on MLBTR’s list of available players that winter. Little did we know at the time that Darvish would spent only half the length of that contract in a Cubs uniform.

At the time, Darvish seemed like a much-needed injection of frontline rotation talent for the Cubs. After falling to the Dodgers in the NLCS in their title defense season, swiping Darvish from the Dodgers had the potential to swing a potential rematch in seasons to come.

That rematch wouldn’t come to pass, however. Darvish would make just nine starts for the Cubs in the 2018 season. Though they won 95 games, Joe Maddon’s club stumbled into a wild card spot before losing the wild card game to the Rockies on a Tony Wolters RBI single in the 13th inning.

The timing was never quite right for Darvish and the Cubs. He was better in his second season in Chicago, but not good enough to change the fortunes of their fledgling contender. Darvish finished second for the NL Cy Young during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, but they fell in the first round of the playoffs to the Marlins.

Though Darvish was incredible during that 2020 season (2.01 ERA/2.23 FIP over 76 innings), the Cubs chose to sell high on their one-time free agent prize, sending him to the Padres for a quartet of teenagers. The Cubs were largely criticized at the time of the deal, though the full impact of the move won’t be known for many years yet. There’s no doubt that Chicago needed an injection of youth for a system that had largely stagnated during their years of contention. Further, in terms of maximizing their assets, Darvish was their most valuable trade piece at the time.

And though Darvish’s arsenal is robust, and he’s among the strikeout leaders on a per batter basis year-by-year, his bottom line run prevention numbers don’t necessarily paint him as one of the best pitchers in the league.

He was certainly a touch disappointing in his first season with the Padres, posting just 1.4 rWAR/2.9 fWAR despite making 30 starts and tossing 166 1/3 innings. The 34-year-old wasn’t bad in 2021, but with a 4.22 ERA/3.90 FIP, Darvish looks more like a solid mid-rotation arm than a true frontline ace, even with an impressive 29.2 percent strikeout rate and 6.5 percent walk rate.

The fact is, outside of his tremendous 2020 season, Darvish has been closer to this 2021 self for most of his Major League career – at least since missing the 2015 season. Still, that makes for a valuable rotation arm that ought to play a valuable role for the Padres over the next two seasons, even in his age-35 and age-36 seasons.

At the same time, it’s hard to fault the Cubs now for selling when they did. MLBTR readers did not like the deal, with the most popular grades being a C and D at the time. But in retrospect, the Cubs were clearly more than a Darvish away from competing last season.

On the whole, even though they traded him halfway through the deal, the Cubs probably still feel pretty good about their decision to sign Darvish. On the field, he gave them 294 2/3 innings over three seasons with a 3.60 ERA/3.77 FIP, totaling 5.8 fWAR. Those aggregate numbers are solid, though they came in the shape of one subpar season, one stellar season, and one middle-of-the-road year in 2019.

Taking a more holistic approach, you can give Darvish credit for also netting the organization four prospects who may still provide a boost to Cubs teams down the road. As of right now, Fangraphs has the four prospects the Cubs got for Darvish ranked as their #3, #5, #37, and #48 ranked prospects in their system. Will those four prospects end up being more valuable than the final three years of Darvish’s free agent deal? That’s a question for a future date. In terms of the free agent deal that was signed four years ago today, the move didn’t turn out exactly the way the Cubs perhaps wanted, but they should count it as a win nonetheless.

Padres Activate Yu Darvish

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The Padres will activate Yu Darvish to start tonight’s ballgame, per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register (via Twitter).

Daniel Camarena has been optioned to Triple-A to create the roster space to add Darvish, the team announced. Camarena served up the game-winning two-run shot to AJ Pollock in the 16th inning of yesterday’s marathon contest. The 28-year-old southpaw has generated more buzz for his work at the plate this season, hitting a grand slam off Max Scherzer in his first career plate appearance. He had an at-bat in last night’s game as well, but he went down swinging.

For his part, Darvish has been out since August 13th with lower back tightness. He has a 3.70 ERA/3.71 FIP in 23 starts covering 131 1/3 innings with a typically strong 29.9 percent strikeout rate, 5.7 percent walk rate, and lower than usual 36.0 percent groundball rate.

The Padres have seen their pitching depth ravaged by injuries this season. If they’re going to stay in the hunt for the second wild card game, Darvish’s healthy return would seem a likely requirement. Chris Paddack could also be on his way back after a successful three-inning simulated game, notes Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Padres Place Jake Arrieta On Injured List

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The Padres announced this evening they’ve placed starter Jake Arrieta on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to August 19, due to a left hamstring strain. The move opens space on the active roster for utilityman Jurickson Profar, who has been reinstated after missing two weeks on the COVID-19 IL. To open space on the 40-man roster for Profar, reliever Drew Pomeranz was transferred from the 10-day to the 60-day IL.

Already reeling in the rotation due to injuries to Yu Darvish, Dinelson Lamet and Chris Paddack, San Diego signed Arrieta this week after he was released by the Cubs. The veteran right-hander made his first start as a Padre on Wednesday at Coors Field. He allowed five runs over 3 1/3 innings against the Rockies before departing due to the hamstring issue that today landed him on the shelf.

With Arrieta also out, San Diego will again have to try and piece things together behind Joe Musgrove, Blake Snell and Ryan Weathers. Reiss Knehr looks like one potential option for the back of the rotation, and the Padres also have Daniel Camarena on the 40-man roster as a pitcher capable of working into the middle innings. Fortunately, Darvish threw a bullpen session this afternoon, his first since landing on the IL last weekend (via AJ Cassavell of MLB.com).

Pomeranz’s transfer to the 60-day IL is nothing more than a procedural move. The southpaw is out for the season after it was determined he’s require surgery to repair a torn flexor tendon.

Padres Activate Fernando Tatis Jr., Place Yu Darvish On IL

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The Padres have reinstated Fernando Tatis Jr. from the IL, per a club announcement. He is in today’s lineup, starting in right field, his first career game at a position other than shortstop. Yu Darvish is swapping places with Tatis and going on the IL, with lower back tightness. Additionally, outfielder Brian O’Grady has been optioned, with righty Reiss Knehr being recalled.

Despite ongoing shoulder issues, Tatis has been one of the best players in baseball this year. He has an excellent slash line of .290/.373/.647 on the year, producing a wRC+ of 165. Among players with at least 350 plate appearances, the only ones with a higher wRC+ are Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Shohei Ohtani. The Padres are moving him to the outfield in the hopes that he’ll see less defensive action and will therefore be less likely to re-aggravate the shoulder problems that have already seen him go on the IL three times this season. Having his bat back in the lineup will surely be a boost to a Padres team that has been sliding lately, but still maintains a 2 1/2 game lead over the Reds for the final National League wildcard spot, going into today’s action. Jake Cronenworth, who has been manning shortstop in the absence of Tatis, figures to remain there. Wil Myers, who has been the regular right fielder of late, might be the most at risk of losing playing time.

As for Darvish, he left his start a few days ago with lower back tightness and he will now miss at least one start while recuperating. It’s a serious blow to the Padres rotation, as Darvish is having yet another excellent season. Through 131 1/3 innings, he has an ERA of 3.70, with a strikeout rate of 29.9% and walk rate of 5.7%, both of which are much better than league average. Craig Stammen is starting today, in what figures to be a bullpen game.

The San Diego rotation is now down to Blake Snell, Joe Musgrove and Ryan Weathers for the time being. Reinforcements will surely be required, either internally or externally. Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports that the club is considering free agents such as Jake Arrieta, who was released by the Cubs three days ago.

Yu Darvish Leaves Game Due To Lower Back Tightness

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Yu Darvish made a quick exit from tonight’s game against the Diamondbacks, lasting just 2 2/3 innings and allowing five runs.  Darvish was removed after a mound visit from the team trainer, and the Padres announced that Darvish left due to lower back tightness.

With San Diego already short-handed in the rotation, the last thing the Padres need is an injury to Darvish, the team’s leader in innings despite a minimum 10-day trip to injured list in July (Darvish’s absence covered the All-Star break).  Left hip inflammation was the cause of that IL visit, and tonight’s rough outing continues an inconsistent run for the right-hander since the start of July.  Darvish had a 6.34 ERA over his previous six starts, though he seemed to have turned a corner with a very strong performance (7 IP, two ER, 12 K, no walks) in his last game on August 7, also against the Diamondbacks.

Darvish’s next scheduled start is on Tuesday against the Rockies at Coors Field, and it is possible the Padres could push Darvish back a couple of days even if an IL trip isn’t required.  However, that only further hampers a rotation already down to four regular starters in Darvish, Joe Musgrove, Blake Snell, and Ryan Weathers.  Craig Stammen is being stretched out for starter or opener duty in tandem with rookie Reiss Knehr, as San Diego continues to look for ways to fill innings with Chris Paddack and Dinelson Lamet still on the injured list.

Padres Activate Yu Darvish

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The Padres announced they’ve reinstated ace Yu Darvish from the 10-day injured list to start this evening’s game against the Braves. Righty Miguel Díaz was optioned to Triple-A El Paso to open active roster space. Additionally, righty Jordan Humphreys has been passed through outright waivers and assigned to Double-A San Antonio. The move opens a spot on the Padres 40-man roster.

Darvish landed on the IL just before the All-Star Break with left hip inflammation. It was never expected to be a lengthy absence, and he’ll indeed make his return after a minimal stay. Last year’s NL Cy Young award runner-up is having another very strong season. He’s tossed 105 innings of 3.09 ERA/3.37 SIERA ball this year, earning his fifth career All-Star nod in the process.

Humphreys has yet to pitch in the majors, but he’s bounced between a few teams in recent years. A well-regarded prospect early in his career with the Mets’ organization, he missed much of the 2018-19 campaigns after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Acquired by the Giants last summer, Humphreys went to the Indians then back to San Francisco on waivers before landing with San Diego on another claim in early March.

The Friars have successfully gotten Humphreys through the wire, so he’ll remain in the organization without requiring a 40-man roster spot. He has pitched 10 2/3 innings with San Antonio already, managing just a 9.28 ERA with a below-average 13.2% strikeout rate.

Padres Place Yu Darvish On 10-Day Injured List

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The Padres announced that right-hander Yu Darvish has been placed on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to July 9) due to left hip inflammation.  Righty Nabil Crismatt was called up from Triple-A El Paso to take Darvish’s spot on the active roster.

It was already known that Darvish wouldn’t be pitching in the All-Star Game, after he was named to the team for the fifth time in his MLB career.  Assuming his IL stint is a minimum 10 days, Darvish won’t miss a start, factoring in both the two days of retroactive placement already banked and the four-day All-Star break.  The righty is currently lined up to start San Diego’s fourth game of the second half, a road game against the Braves on July 19.

Of course, it shouldn’t be assumed that Darvish will be immediately ready for that start, considering that he left his last outing on Thursday due to back and hip tightness.  Darvish was touched for six runs in three innings in that start against the Nationals, easily the worst start of what has been an impressive debut season in San Diego for the veteran hurler.  Darvish has a 3.09 ERA/3.36 SIERA over 105 innings for the Padres, with a strong 29.8% strikeout rate and 5.7% walk rate.  There is a lot of red ink in general on Darvish’s Statcast card, but his elite 99th-percentile fastball spin rate stands out as particularly noteworthy.

Darvish isn’t a pitcher the Padres can afford to be without for too long, especially considering that Blake Snell and Dinelson Lamet are also still on the 10-day IL (though tentatively expected to return after the All-Star break).  Starting pitching was already thought to be a priority for the Padres heading into the trade deadline, and that need will only increase if there is any uncertainty about Darvish’s readiness.

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