Padres Manager Provides Ominous Yu Darvish Injury Update

San Diego Padres right-hander Yu Darvish is dealing with "general fatigue," according to manager Mike Shildt.

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The Padres are not certain the veteran will be in the starting rotation to open the season. As of now, the rotation includes Michael King, Dylan Cease, Darvish, and Nick Pivetta.

The Padres are still looking for their fifth starter, but if Darvish's injury keeps him sidelined for the start of the season, then the team will need to add two more arms to the rotation.

Darvish has not thrown the past couple days because of it, and there's no official timeline for his return.

Yu Darvish has what Mike Shildt called "general fatigue" and hasn't thrown past couple days. "Just want to be smart, getting into a long season," Shildt said.

No clarity on when Darvish would resume throwing. Also unclear whether he'd be available in the season-opening rotation.
— AJ Cassavell (@AJCassavell) March 17, 2025

"Just want to be smart getting into a long season," Shildt said.

Darvish, who will turn 39 in August, is entering his 13th Major League season in 2025. Last season, Darvish went 7-3 with a 3.31 ERA, 78 strikeouts, and a 1.065 WHIP across 81.2 innings pitched.

While he is still expected to be a key piece in the rotation this season, the Padres could limit his workload in order to ensure he is ready for October.

“We’re gonna watch, we’re gonna pay attention, we’re gonna listen to him, we’re gonna watch the metrics,” pitching coach Ruben Niebla said to Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune. “But Yu is the one guy that you can trust on this more than anybody else. He’s so aware.

"Yu also has a lot of low-effort, less-stress innings (compared to) other pitchers. …. He doesn’t exert a lot of energy through his outings. So it’s not max effort. He conserves energy through the course of a game.”

Darvish was a key contributor for the Padres in the playoffs. During his Game 2 and Game 5 outings during the National League Division Series, he allowed a total of three runs. The veteran was dominant in the postseason, despite missing several months due to injury and a family emergency.

The season is long, and in order to preserve Darvish for the postseason, limiting his workload may be the smartest idea, especially in light of the veteran's recent setback.

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