The San Diego Padres and starting pitcher Yu Darvish are extending their professional relationship for the next six years.
The Padres are sold on Padres as a top-tier pitcher and a student of the game with a drive to learn and improve; and the pitcher is sold on San Diego as a nice place to live and an up-and-coming powerhouse on the field that will allow him to fight for the World Series.
The Padres will pay Darvish $108 million over the next six seasons.
The decision was a bit odd from the Padres side, since Darvish will turn 37 in the summer and this extension makes them commit to paying him until he is 42.
Successful pitchers that remain such at 42 are rare.
The team front-loaded the agreement and his salary won’t be a problem in his later years, as inflation will be a factor, too.
The pitcher commented on the agreement and is eager to stay in San Diego for the next six years.
“I am honored to be able to come to terms on a new contract with the San Diego Padres. I am truly grateful for the support from the fans, team, teammates, and staff,” Darvish tweeted after the agreement was made public.
I am honored to be able to come to terms on a new contract with the San Diego Padres.
I am truly grateful for the support from the fans, team, teammates, and staff. https://t.co/6LG5GXBaDm— ダルビッシュ有(Yu Darvish) (@faridyu) February 10, 2023
The Padres put together a really strong rotation trio with Darvish, Blake Snell and Joe Musgrove.
All of them were acquired via trade and were highly effective in 2022.
Darvish himself pitched to a 3.10 ERA in 194.2 innings, striking out 197 batters.
His fastball remains effective, he has at least six pitches, his control was marvelous in 2022 and he has every tool and resource to remain competitive for at least four of those six years.
NEXT: MLB Analyst Breaks Down The Yu Darvish Extension
