PRELLER TELLS NEWEST HURLER TO BE HIMSELF
A.J. Preller told his old friend, Yu Darvish, during a FaceTime call Tuesday about Padres players and staff and how much he thinks the pitcher will enjoy San Diego.
The Padres general manager, who knew Darvish from their time together with the Texas Rangers, also told Darvish to be himself.
It’s a message Preller imparts to many players. Personality is the sixth tool the Padres value in their players.
But being comfortable, it seems, is especially important in Darvish’s case.
The Padres continued their spending of prospect capital by sending seven of their top 16 prospects to the Tampa Bay Rays and Chicago Cubs in exchange for Blake Snell and Darvish, respectively, in the span of about 24 hours this week. They did so with the goal of winning now. There is no time for acclimation.
Darvish plans to make it a priority to do what he can to become an integral part of his new team.
“I have a tendency to always put a lock on myself and kind of look around and not really open up,” Darvish said Thursday during a Zoom call with reporters. “So my first year with the Padres I really do want to go into spring training and be open and meet everybody.”
Shortly after people got to know the real Darvish (on and off the field) in Chicago, he was shipped to the Padres for pitcher Zach Davies and four prospects between the ages of 18 and 20. By the time he got back to being himself there, the Cubs were not committed to remaining at his level.
After posting a 3.42 ERA in fiveplus seasons with the Rangers and nine starts with the Dodgers, Darvish signed a six-year, $126 million contract with the Cubs in February 2018.
His evolution in Chicago went like this:
In his first eight starts of 2018, he allowed 22 earned runs and walked 21 batters in 40 innings. His eighth and final start of that season came May 20; he ultimately was shut down in August due to a stress reaction in his elbow and triceps strain in his right (throwing) arm.
He had a 5.01 ERA through his first 18 starts in 2019, allowing 54 earned runs and walking 49 in 97 innings.
But in his 25 starts since July 12 of that season, he has a 2.40 ERA and has walked just 21 in 1572⁄ in
3 nings. Among the 56 pitchers who have thrown at least 120 innings in that span, only Jacob deGrom (1.83), Jack Flaherty (2.06) and Gerrit Cole (2.24) have a lower ERA than Darvish.
He posted a 2.01 ERA and 0.96 WHIP (walks and hits per inning pitched) and finished second in National League Cy Young voting in 2020 (12 starts, 76 innings).
“When I first joined the Cubs I was trying to be very careful with a bunch of things,” Darvish recalled. “I wanted to contribute to the team immediately. I didn’t want to let down the team. I guess in June (2019), the Cubs staff and my teammates, they really helped me be part of the team. We became really close. That really helped me become the pitcher I am now.”
Much was made in Chicago throughout the latter part of ’19 and in ’ 20 how Darvish had opened up and acclimated to his new teammates and connected with fans by showing a quirky sense of humor on Twitter.
Cubs President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer also had a conversation with Darvish on Tuesday and reminisced the next day about Darvish’s transformation.
“I think he got comfortable,” Hoyer said Wednesday. “I talked to Yu about this. I think that what we witnessed was really pretty spectacular and admirable. … Nothing was smooth in that first year. He really struggled. Probably acclimating. I think he struggled physically that first year. And then he came back in 2019 and those struggles continued. For him to be able to turn things around, it’s really a testament to his character, honestly.
“I think about where the fans were on Yu Darvish in May 2019 vs. where the fans are on him now and it’s a 180 that I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like that. For him to have the streng th of character to deal with those struggles, not only for the first year — you can write off the first year, but then to come back and struggle again in 2019 and to be able to start pitching well and to carry that momentum through the 2019 season and then to carry it into this year, I couldn’t have any more respect for the fact that he fought through that. To me, it’s a great example that I’ll use going forward. When a free agent comes in and struggles, I think you have to look to this as the gold standard of being able to turn things around.”
At one point seen as stoic, Darvish on Thursday asked for a moment in the middle of the Zoom call in order to gather his emotions following a couple answers he gave regarding his time in Chicago. After the call had seemingly been completed, Darvish asked to say one more thing.
“To the San Diego media, thank you for taking the time,” he said. “… I’m looking forward to meeting everybody. I may be a little weird personality-wise, but I’m looking forward to getting to know all you guys. I may cause some trouble, but I’m looking forward to seeing you guys.”
Now he joins a team that was already seen as a solid playoff contender and that his arrival pushed into a strata of expectation generally occupied by only teams like the Dodgers and Yankees.
“I think this is one of the best teams in baseball,” Darvish said. “I wanted to throw against the Padres last season just to see how good I was. I always want to be fighting against the best teams. I am very happy to be joining a team that is as strong with the Padres. … I’ve been having my kids watch highlights of the Padres on YouTube. They’re a very strong team. I’m excited to watch batting practice.”
Kim signing official
The Padres off icially announced their signing Kim Haseong.
Kim was signed to four-year contract with a mutual option for 2025. The deal was done Monday, but Kim had to travel from Korea to undergo physicals. He signed his contract at Petco Park on Thursday.
Kim is reportedly guaranteed $28 million plus incentives that could push the total value to $32 million over the first four years.
The 25-year-old Kim primarily played shortstop in Korea, where he was arguably the KBO’s best hitter over the past four seasons. He has also played second and third base and could see time in the outfield in San Diego.