BASEBALL: Yu Darvish reaches 200 combined wins in NPB,ㄨ MLB

THE ASAHI SHIMBUN

May 20, 2024 at 14:51 JST

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San Diego Padres pitcher Yu Darvish works in the first inning against the Atlanta Braves on May 19 in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

Yu Darvish of the San Diego Padres became only the third Japanese-born player to win a combined 200 games in Nippon Professional Baseball and Major League Baseball.

Darvish, 37, reached the milestone against the Atlanta Braves on May 19, allowing only two hits in seven scoreless innings.

Hideo Nomo reached 200 combined wins in 2005 when he was with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, and Hiroki Kuroda followed suit in 2016 when he was with the Hiroshima Toyo Carp.

There have been 24 pitchers with 200 wins in NPB history.

But Darvish is the first to record all 200 of his wins as a starting pitcher.

He was initially scheduled to start against Atlanta on May 18, but the game was rained out. Win No. 200 came the following day in the Padres’ 9-1 trouncing of the Braves.

Darvish was born in Osaka Prefecture.

As a second-year student at Tohoku Senior High School in Miyagi Prefecture, he led the team to second-place finish at the Koshien national high school summer tournament in 2003.

In autumn 2004, he was selected in the first round of the draft by the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters.

In 2006, Darvish helped the team win its first Japan Series championship in 44 years. He was also named Pacific League MVP in 2007 and 2009.

Darvish joined the Texas Rangers in 2012 through the posting system.

In 2013, he topped the majors in strikeouts, and led the National League in wins in 2020 with the Chicago Cubs.

In 2021, he joined the Padres, and is now in his 20th year as a professional baseball player.

At the start of the season, he needed only four more victories to reach the 200-win mark.

After recovering from a neck strain, Darvish returned to the mound and won three games in a row.

His record with the Fighters was 93-38, while his major league tally so far is 107 wins against 86 losses.

Darvish also helped Samurai Japan win the World Baseball Classic in 2009 and 2023.