Padres Manager Reveals Yu Darvish's Plans for 2026 Season

Veteran right-hander Yu Darvish of the San Diego Padres will be missing the entire 2026 season due to injury. Darivsh had an internal brace procedure in November on his elbow, and his best-case scenario is to return in 2027.

Due to his age and this being the second major surgery on his elbow, there were rumors going around earlier in the offseason about Darvish retiring from the sport. However, Darvish quickly clarified that he was in fact not retiring from baseball — at least for now.

Darvish revealed that he was leaning towards potentially voiding the contract he has with the Padres, but still hasn't made the decision. The veteran still has three more years left on his contract, and he is owed $46 million through the 2028 season.

You may have seen an article, and although I am leaning towards voiding the contract, there’s still a lot that has to be talked over with the Padres so the finer details are yet to be decided.
Also I will not be announcing my retirement yet.
Right now I am fully focused on my…
— ダルビッシュ有(Yu Darvish) (@faridyu) January 24, 2026

Darvish has been with Team Japan for the World Baseball Classic this spring, even though he isn't able to perform. But Padres manager Craig Stammen did say that Darvish recently visited the Padres camp at spring training and that he was a good influence on the team.

“Darvish’s visit was good,” Stammen said. “It was great to see him. His presence around camp is always wanted, always needed. And he just has such a good influence on a lot of the guys we have in the clubhouse.”

Stammen even revealed that Darvish would be returning to the Padres after the conclusion of the WBC. The veteran right-hander still wants to be around the team, it seems, and the Padres are more than willing to let him.

“Oh yeah, he’ll be back," Stammen said.

While the veteran won't be pitching this year, having his voice in the locker room would be good for the Padres. Darvish is a well-respected pitcher in the game, and he has been a core piece to the Padres for years.

Last season with the Padres, Darvish made 15 starts. In this time, he posted an ERA of 5.38, pitching in 72 innings total.

Throughout his career, Darvish has been named to the All-Star team five times, and he has been a frontline starter for his teams. Losing Darvish does hurt the Padres, especially since the starting rotation is the biggest question mark for the team entering the season.

In addition to Darvish missing the year, San Diego will likely be without Joe Musgrove for the start of the season after he suffered a setback in his recovery. The Padres will have to move forward with the guys that are available, which makes the leadership of Darvish in the clubhouse even more paramount.

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