Padres Playoff Starter From Last Year Could Make A Return

The San Diego Padres have been shuffling bodies in their bullpen and starting rotation, and most of the names are more than familiar. But Yu Darvish was one of the more unexpected ones, as AJ Cassevell of MLB.com did an update that featured the veteran right-hander throwing a light bullpen session at Petco Park with teammates and coaches looking on. 

Darvish reported afterward that this was actually his second full bullpen as he continues to recover from internal brace surgery on his right elbow last October. 

“I’m really happy with it,” Darvish told Cassavell. 

The 40-year old right-hander hasn’t committed to a comeback just yet, however. There’s no timeline in place, and Darvish could be doing this just to restore his overall arm health after two decades of wear and tear. It’s a near-certainty that he won’t pitch this season, but it does make a mound comeback possible next year. 

His contract situation makes that complicated, though. Darvish still has two years and $30 million left on the long-term deal he signed with the Padres, and there were reports during the offseason that he was going to retire. 

But the right-hander refuted those reports, saying he was going to commit to his rehab and see where he wound up. 

“I am fully focused on my rehab for my elbow, and if I get to a point where I can throw again, I will start from scratch again to compete,” Darvish said in a social media post at the time. “If once I get to that point I feel I can’t do that, I will announce my retirement.”

Darvish added that he’s on schedule in his rehab, but everything is tbd beyond that, as manager Craig Stammen acknowledged. 

“He looks like he could come back,” said manager Craig Stammen. “We’ll see if he wants to.”

Darvish has been on the restricted lis this season, according to Cassavell, so he doesn’t spend game days with the team. He does come to the park now that his rehab has ramped up, and the writer added that he often reports to Petco Park regularly well before the first pitch, then leaves before the games begin. 

His career stats are impressive across 13 seasons with the Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs and the Padres, as Cassavell noted that he’s gone 115-93 with a 3.65 ERA and 2,075 strikeouts. His 208 combined victories between MLB and Japan’s NPB are the most all-time.