LOS ANGELES _ It was a cute story, how the Dodgers embraced the newcomer who was not only from another country but was also wired unlike anyone else they knew.
The ending was nowhere near as heart-rending. Yu Darvish cost the Dodgers the World Series.
Darvish did the unimaginable and inexcusable, following one historically atrocious start with another, the second coming Wednesday night in a 5-1 defeat to the Houston Astros in Game 7. The Japanese right-hander never gave the Dodgers a chance to win the championship they waited 29 years to reclaim, allowing five runs while registering only five outs.
Clayton Kershaw pitched four innings in relief, raising questions about why he didn't start instead. Here's why: Darvish is a four-time All-Star. This is only a subject of conversation because Darvish didn't do what he was supposed to do. This wasn't about manager Dave Roberts or the front office failing to think outside of the box and bring back Kershaw on two-days' rest. This was about Darvish failing to show up on baseball's greatest stage, plain and simple.
Games like this can happen to anyone. Kershaw squandered a four-run advantage, then contributed to the Dodgers blowing a three-run lead, all in the same Game 5 loss. Only Darvish failed to show up twice in the same seven-game series. He recorded as many outs Wednesday as he did in his Game 3 debacle, also a Dodgers loss.
History will record his July 31 trade to the Dodgers in absolute terms. Darvish helped the Dodgers reach the World Series, winning a game in a National League division series and another in the NL Championship Series. That's not what will be remembered. The organization's goal wasn't to reach the World Series. It was to win it.
You get what you pay for, right? Darvish spent the previous 5 { seasons with the Texas Rangers, who parted with him for what felt like a minimal cost. The most prized prospect the Dodgers traded for him was Willie Calhoun, a defensive liability who didn't figure into their long-term plans.
The Rangers probably knew something. They probably knew he was as likely to perform how he did in this World Series as he was of ever realizing his breathtaking potential. Darvish made two postseason starts for the Rangers and lost both.
The Dodgers weren't asking of Darvish what the Rangers did. The Dodgers weren't looking for Orel Hershiser of 1988. What they wanted was someone who could pitch five or six innings _ and perhaps less in the postseason.
He failed to do even that.
