Yu Darvish

Yu Darvish
Yu Darvish
	Darvish with the San Diego Padres in 2022
San Diego Padres – No. 11
	Pitcher
	Born: August 16, 1986 (age 38); Habikino, Osaka, Japan
	Bats: Right Throws: Right
Professional debut
	NPB: June 15, 2005, for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters
	MLB: April 9, 2012, for the Texas Rangers
NPB statistics ; (through 2011 season)
Win–loss record	93–38
Earned run average	1.99
Strikeouts	1,250
MLB statistics ; (through 2024 season)
Win–loss record	110–88
Earned run average	3.58
Strikeouts	2,007
	Stats at Baseball Reference
Teams
	Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters (2005–2011); Texas Rangers (2012–2014, 2016–2017); Los Angeles Dodgers (2017); Chicago Cubs (2018–2020); San Diego Padres (2021–present);
Career highlights and awards
	NPB 2× Pacific League MVP (2007, 2009); Eiji Sawamura Award (2007); Japan Series champion (2006); 3× Pacific League strikeout title (2007, 2010, 2011); 2× Pacific League ERA title (2009, 2010); 2× Pacific League Best Nine Award (2007, 2009); 2× Pacific League Mitsui Golden Glove Award (2007, 2008); 2006 Asia Series MVP; 5× NPB All-Star (2007–2011); 2007 PLCS Second Stage MVP; MLB 5× All-Star (2012–2014, 2017, 2021); All-MLB First Team (2020); NL wins leader (2020); AL strikeout leader (2013);
Medals
Representing Japan
Men's Baseball
World Baseball Classic
Asian Baseball Championship

Faridoon Yu Darvish Sefat (ダルビッシュ・セファット・ファリドン.ド・有, Darubisshu Sefatto Faridoon Yū, born August 16, 1986), more commonly known as Yu Darvish (ダルビッシュ有), is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher for the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB). Darvish has also played in MLB for the Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Chicago Cubs and in Nippon Professional Baseball for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. In international play, Darvish pitched in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2009 World Baseball Classic as a member of the Japan national baseball team.^[1]

He was considered by many to be the best pitcher in Nippon Professional Baseball prior to his arrival in Major League Baseball in 2012.^[2]^[3] 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 by leading MLB in strikeouts with 277 and finishing fourth in the AL in earned run average (ERA) at 2.83. In April 2014, Darvish reached the 500-strikeout mark in fewer innings pitched than any starting pitcher in MLB history. He pitched in the 2017 World Series for the Dodgers, where his underwhelming performance was later attributed to being a victim of the Houston Astros sign stealing scandal.^[4] He was named an All-Star for the Padres in 2021.

Darvish has recorded the most strikeouts by a Japanese-born pitcher in MLB history, and was the first Japanese pitcher to 2,000 MLB strikeouts.^[5]