BIOGRAPHY
Yu Darvish was born August 16, 1986, in Osaka, Japan. He is a pitcher in the MLB.
In international play, Darvish pitched in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2009 World Baseball Classic as a member of the Japanese national team.
He was considered by many to be the best pitcher in Japanese professional baseball prior to his arrival in Major League Baseball in 2012. In his first MLB season, Darvish finished third in the American League (AL) Rookie of the Year balloting. The next season, he finished second in the AL Cy Young Award vote as he led the Major Leagues in strikeouts with 277 and finished fourth in the AL in earned run average (ERA) at 2.83. Darvish reached the 500 strikeout mark in fewer innings pitched than any starting pitcher in MLB history.
On December 29, 2020, Darvish along with personal catcher Víctor Caratini was traded to the San Diego Padres in exchange for pitcher Zach Davies and four prospects. In his first year with the Padres, Darvish posted an 8–11 record with a 4.22 ERA and 199 strikeouts in 166+1⁄3 innings. He was also named to his fifth All-Star team.
The following season, Darvish threw his 3,000th career strikeout on 2 September 2022, becoming only the second Japanese pitcher after Hideo Nomo to reach the milestone. In 30 starts for San Diego in 2022, Darvish recorded a 16–8 record and 3.10 ERA with 197 strikeouts in 194.2 innings pitched.
On February 9, 2023, Darvish signed a six-year, $108 million contract extension with the Padres ahead of the 2023 season.
