Aaron Doster/Connected Press
A replace sending Yu Darvish from the Chicago Cubs to the San Diego Padres “is on the verge of occurring,” per ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
The Cubs’ return is starting pitcher Zach Davies and 4 potentialities, while Victor Caratini can be going to San Diego:
Jeff Passan @JeffPassan
The Yu Darvish-to-the-Padres deal is on the verge of occurring, sources issue ESPN. Darvish is anticipated to head with Victor Caratini to SD. Cubs’ return is Zach Davies and 4 younger potentialities: OF Owen Caissie (18), SS Reggie Preciado (17), OF Ismael Mena (18), Yeison Santana (20).
On Sunday, Passan reported the Padres like been touchdown 2018 American League Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell.
MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reported Dec. 21 that Darvish had surfaced in replace rumors but downplayed the likelihood he would leave Chicago:
Jon Heyman @JonHeyman
Cubs ace Yu Darvish looks on the market in replace talks, but it absolutely can be an example of a willingness to take into chronicle the relaxation. And, off 2nd keep Cy enact plus mammoth 2nd half in ‘19, 1 exec charges replace likelihood as “very low,” and 1 uninvolved rival exec, guessed this on the demand: “Babe Ruth?”
The switch did now not come as a mammoth shock, despite the proven truth that, since possession has confirmed restraint in the direction of the payroll in most modern years. Also, in asserting his departure from the group, president of baseball operations Theo Epstein alluded to “a assortment of choices this iciness that carry prolonged-timeframe penalties.”
Some took that to imply Chicago changed into as soon as taking a notice to switch on from confirmed stars.
Darvish is below contract for 3 more years and $59 million, and he’s a four-time All-Big identify who performed second in the 2020 National League Cy Young Award balloting. By trading the feeble appropriate-hander, the Cubs can reduce their monetary burden and add some pieces to bear up their farm system.
That is how MLB.com ranks the potentialities in the deal in the Padres system:
- Reginald Preciado, SS, 11th
- Owen Caissie, OF, 13th
- Ismael Mena, OF, 15th
- Yeison Santana, SS, 16th
That doubtlessly won’t fulfill followers who can precisely argue the Cubs like a window to contend appropriate now, thus making it a appropriate advice to keep Darvish around.
Darvish’s Cubs tenure did now not procure off to a huge originate, as a stress response in his elbow and a strained triceps cramped him to eight starts in 2018. He rebounded with a 3.98 ERA and 1.10 WHIP in 2019 sooner than inserting collectively a dominant 2020.
In 12 starts, the 34-year-feeble averaged 11.0 strikeouts per nine innings and a profession-most attention-grabbing 1.7 walks per nine innings while posting a 2.23 FIP, per FanGraphs. His 3.0 WAR changed into as soon as first amongst National League pitchers.
Given his age, it is likely you’ll divulge Darvish will likely be shedding some zip. As a replacement, he averaged a profession-excessive 96.0 mph on his four-seam fastball and 95.1 mph on his sinker, his second-most attention-grabbing price, per Brooks Baseball.
“I divulge like heaps of hitters are slack my fastballs,” Darvish told The Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma in August. “It’s popping out appropriate; I like more upward push on it than closing year. I want to make employ of it after I want to make employ of it, now not every time. That works for me too. Because they like to sit down on my fastball too. It’s 96-97, after which I throw heaps of breaking balls.”
Opposing hitters like to grab their poison. They want to be cautious of the mid-90s fastball and sinker besides to the largest arsenal of pitches in MLB. Darvish added the “supreme” in June despite the proven truth that he already had 10 alternatives in his toolkit.
Brooks Baseball affords a more conservative total of eight:
- Four-seam fastball
- Sinker
- Changeup
- Slider
- Curveball
- Cutter
- Splitter
- Slack curveball
For the explanation that season changed into as soon as so quick and started months later than scheduled, Darvish’s 2020 production may maybe furthermore merely be skewed a runt. He will likely be unable to keep the roughly efficiency he confirmed over a elephantine campaign.
Even though that is the case, his physique of work speaks for itself. His 25.2 WAR since 2012 is 15th-most attention-grabbing amongst pitchers despite the proven truth that he’s made simplest 182 starts all the method thru that span, per FanGraphs, which is as a minimum 22 fewer than all but one player earlier than him.
He’ll tremendously give a take hold of to the San Diego rotation.
With high prospect MacKenzie Gore on the upward push, the Padres may maybe furthermore merely like belief they’d came all the method in which thru a bridge in trading for Mike Clevinger on August 31. Nevertheless that thought went awry when Clevinger underwent Tommy John surgical treatment in November, likely wiping out his 2021 season.
As vivid as Gore’s future is, San Diego is taking a notice to compete appropriate now. Luis Patino, the team’s No. 3 prospect, is the heart piece of the Snell swap, per Passan.
If Dinelson Lamet’s breakout changed into as soon as a signal of things to come attend, then the team can like the requisite fingers to enhance upon a sweep by the fingers of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Division Series. And the Dodgers will like some extreme competitors in the NL West.
