The San Diego Padres have sparked another off-season as they go on to acquire Cubs right-hander Yu Darvish as part of a seven-player deal, Mark Feinsand told MLB.com. reports. Jon Heyman adds that the agreement is being agreed upon pending the usual review of medical records of the players concerned and that it should be finalized soon. CJ Sports’ RJ Anderson first reported that the two parties were close, and according to Feinsand, the Cubs will receive veteran judge Zach Davies and a package of four prospects in an agreement reached Monday night. The Padres will also get catcher Victor Caratini in the trade.
The trade in Darvish comes not long after the Padres reached a play-off season in 2020, reached an agreement with the rays for left-handed Blake Snell and reportedly reached Korean fielder Ha-Seong Kim.
Darvish (34) comes from a season in which he placed the best ERA + (221) and the elimination-to-step ratio (6.64) of his career, although he only started in 12. Darvish’s performance was such that he secured second place in the National League Cy Young Award voting, behind then-Cincinnati Reds judge Trevor Bauer. (Bauer is now a free agent.) In three seasons with the Cubs, Darvish put together a 3.60 ERA (121 ERA +) with a 4.08 beat-to-step ratio. Darvish has three years and $ 59 million left on its contract.
The 27-year-old Caratini served as Darvish’s personal catcher in 2020 and for much of 2019. He is a switch that hit 0.250 / .327 / .372 over four parts of the major leagues.
Currently, the Padres’ 2021 turn includes Darvish, Snell, Dinelson Lamet and Chris Paddack. The prospect of MacKenzie Gore is also not far from the highest level, and Mike Clevinger will return in 2022 after recovering from surgery in Tommy John.
As for the Cubs’ side, Davies, who turns 28 in February, will provide the Cubs with much-needed rotation assistance. The right hand has a career ERA + of 114 and a C / BB ratio of 2.50 in 123 careers. He is in line to be eligible for free agency after the upcoming season.
The prospects that get the Cubs back are the short-lived Reginald Preciado, the outfielder Owen Caissie, the campaign Ismael Mena and the shortstop Yeison Santana. Preciado, 17, is a potential five-instrument fielder, whose $ 1.3 million bonus set a record for a Panama prospect. From the Cubs point of view, Preciado seems to be the most promising addition.
Caissie, 18, was a second-round pick from Canada, and he has showy strength and enough arm for the right field. Mena (18) has a solid offensive tool set, excellent speed and promising range in the outfield. He also has the potential to develop more power on the left. Santana, 20, showed strong numbers at two lower levels. He has the arm to hold on to the left side of the infield and good skills between the ball and the ball, with the promise of more power once he has filled.