Star pitcher Yu Darvish is expected to go on the restricted list as he spends the 2026 season recovering from elbow surgery, a decision that could free up significant payroll space for the San Diego Padres, sources told ESPN on Wednesday.
The restricted list is meant for players who remain under contract but are unavailable for various reasons, freeing up a 40-man roster spot while allowing teams to retain rights to the player if and when he returns. There is no minimum or maximum amount of time a player can spend on the restricted list. Teams are not required to pay them while they're on it.
Darvish, 39, is set to make $15 million in 2026, the fourth year of a six-year, $108 million extension. Not being tied to his salary this season could free the Padres up to more aggressively pursue free agent starter Lucas Giolito, who would help to address their needy rotation. There are no indications at this moment that Darvish intends on retiring.
In January, after a San Diego Union-Tribune report stated that he had informed the Padres of his decision to retire, Darvish wrote on social media that he was "leaning towards voiding the contract" but added "there's still a lot that has to be talked over."
"Right now I am fully focused on my rehab for my elbow, and if I get to a point where I can throw again, I will start from scratch again to compete," Darvish added then. "If once I get to that point I feel I can't do that, I will announce my retirement."
A five-time All-Star and one of the greatest talents to ever come out of Japan, Darvish has accumulated 115 wins while posting a 3.65 ERA in 297 starts throughout his 13-year major league career.
Around the middle of the 2024 season, Darvish was placed on the restricted list for seven weeks while dealing with what the Padres described as a family issue. He was reinstated on Aug. 23, spent roughly two weeks rehabbing an elbow injury, then rejoined the Padres' rotation for the stretch run of the season.
Darvish didn't join the team until July last year and got off to a rough start but recovered slightly with a 4.23 ERA in his last 11 turns through the rotation. He started the decisive game of the Padres' wild-card series from Wrigley Field but was pulled after allowing four straight batters to reach to begin the second inning. The Padres went on to lose 3-1 ending their season.
In November, Darvish underwent surgery to repair his ulnar collateral ligament with an internal brace, a procedure that comes with a 12- to 15-month recovery.
