What to Know
- Yu Darvish walked four batters in an inning and a third during his spring debut Tuesday.
- Darvish only appeared in eight games last season for the Cubs, but has had higher velocity this spring.
Yu Darvish walked off the mound after a bunch of walks, yet wasn't worried. After a rocky first season for the Chicago Cubs full of injuries, he felt fine.
"No pain," he said Tuesday. "That was a huge part."
Darvish walked four in 1 1/3 innings against Arizona and didn't give up a hit. It was his first time facing major league hitters since May — his last minor league rehab outing came in August and he had arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow in September.
A four-time All-Star with Texas, Darvish went 1-3 with a 4.95 ERA in eight starts last season with the Cubs, his first since signing a $126 million, six-year contract.
"This is like my first outing in my life," Darvish said. "I haven't thrown the last seven months. I was so excited."
Chicago Baseball
Darvish threw 36 pitches, only 17 for strikes. But he hit 96 mph with a fastball, a significant jump from his final outing in the minors last year.
"It was a great day for me," Darvish said.
The 32-year-old Japanese ace also cracked a couple of jokes in English as he opted not to use a translator.
"Interpreters are expensive for the organization, right? That's why," Darvish said.
