:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71958184/1436798644.0.jpg "Yu Darvish contract news: Padres SP agrees to 6-year, 8 million extension")
The San Diego Padres and starting pitcher Yu Darvish have agreed to a 6-year, $108 million contract extension, per ESPN's Jeff Passan. Darvish was set to become a free agent following the 2023 season but will now be locked down until after the 2029 season when he will be 42 years old.
Darvish is coming off a rebound season with San Diego. He led the team with a 16-8 record in 30 games started. His 3.10 ERA ranked second on the team, and he pitched 194.2 innings while striking out 197 batters.
Darvish has been in the league since 2012. He signed with the Texas Rangers in 2012 after playing for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters for seven years in the NPB league in Japan. He was posted to the MLB, and the Rangers won the winning bid at a reported $51.7 million. Darvish played for Texas for six seasons but missed 2015 due to Tommy John surgery.
In 2017, Darvish was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers at the trade deadline for prospects. He was only a half-season rental and hit free agency following the season. Darvish signed a 6-year, $126 million deal with the Chicago Cubs in 2018. He only played three seasons of it with the Cubs and was traded to the San Diego Padres thread of the 2021 season.
So far in two years with the Padres, Darvish has combined for a 24-19 record with a 3.61 ERA. He has pitched in 361 innings and has struck out 396 hitters. Darvish was named an All-Star in 2021 and finished eighth in the 2022 NL Cy Young Award voting. He figures to be the No. 2 starter for San Diego behind Joe Musgrove as the Padres look to get back to the postseason.