With 10 minutes to go before the MLB trade deadline on Monday, Yu Darvish thought he was safely remaining a member of the Texas Rangers. Heck, he even sent a tweet to that effect:
10min!! pic.twitter.com/gwP7qwvh8d
— ダルビッシュ有(Yu Darvish) (@faridyu) July 31, 2017
Little did he know that behind the scenes, the Rangers were working on a trade that would send him to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
FOX MLB reporter Ken Rosenthal first reported that Darvish had been sent to the Dodgers. The news came out just more than 10 minutes after the deadline had passed.
The Dodgers were most heavily linked with Darvish as the trade deadline approached, though there was no indication a deal would be made. LA also made efforts to acquire Sonny Gray, but he was traded to the Yankees. They were interested in Zach Britton, but the Orioles decided to keep him. So in the end, they pulled off a big move for Darvish, who is set to be a free agent after the year.
Darvish was blown up in his last start and saw his ERA jump from 3.44 to 4.01. Despite that, he is a legitimate ace with No. 1 stuff, and he should fare even better pitching to National League lineups in Dodger Stadium.
Acquiring the front-end starter could take a little pressure off Clayton Kershaw, who is trying to return from a back injury. The Dodgers should have Kershaw, Darvish and Alex Wood going into the playoffs, and Rich Hill if he holds up. They also added lefty reliever Tony Watson to their bullpen, further fortifying a team that already has the best record in MLB.
