Yu Darvish was once the next best pitcher to come out of Japan. Now, he could potentially be traded.
The Texas Rangers are exploring trading Darvish ahead of the July 31 trade deadline, according to Yahoo’s Jeff Passan. Darvish will be a free agent after this season, so he’ll most likely be a rental for a team trying to make a postseason push, if the Rangers end up trading him.
Passan writes:
In the midst of a wicked slump that dropped them to 45-50 and behind five other teams for the second American League wild card, the Rangers are not committed to dealing Darvish, the 30-year-old right-hander who immediately would become the market’s most coveted asset.
Darvish has struggled since his return from Tommy John surgery in 2015, but he has looked better this season. He has a 3.45 ERA and has struck out 131 batters. He also has a 1.14 WHIP.
The Washington Nationals potentially need a fifth-starter — and Darvish would certainly be more than that, so they don’t seem like a logical option for the Japanese pitcher.
Passan reported the Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians, Colorado Rockies and the Los Angeles Dodgers are all candidates who could make a Darvish trade work.
• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.
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