Has the record binge of cheap home runs across baseball affected Cubs starter Yu Darvish more than most pitchers?
Is the enigmatic right-hander on the verge — once again — of figuring out his ever-shifting malady of the moment?
And why in the name of Jon Lester is this guy starting the Cubs’ first game out of the All-Star break with more on the line over the next week or two than perhaps at any point during this fifth-year run at the playoffs?
As for the last question, it has as much to do with where manager Joe Maddon said he wanted to slot other starters based on rest, and it assures Darvish also gets a start next week against the Reds, one of the teams he has pitched well against as a Cub.
Meanwhile, even as Darvish downplays the second-half opener, it might be the most important start of his second year with the Cubs. Everything is on the line for this team as it begins its 72-game sprint to the finish.
The Cubs have a half-game lead in a tightly packed division with two division opponents opening the second-half schedule at Wrigley Field. The front office plans to be proactive toward the July 31 trade deadline, but that could change in the span of a week if the Cubs face-plant against the Pirates and Reds the next six days.
On second thought, Darvish admitted, it’s a big start. “Yeah, pretty much,” he said. “I’m still looking for my first win [at Wrigley Field], and it’s the first game of the second half. If we can win, that’s a good [tone] for the Cubs.”
Darvish has been both mystifying and inexplicable this season. He has been healthy enough to hit 99 mph with his fastball late in games and to produce knee-buckling breaking stuff. But he has given up 49 walks (fourth-most in the National League), hit six batters (sixth) and has the worst ERA (5.01) among 41 qualifiers in the league.
A guy who admits to thinking too much had by far his best start of the year in Los Angeles against a Dodgers lineup full of dangerous left-handers while constantly being booed in his return from a disastrous 2017 World Series performance for the Dodgers.
He has given up six homers and 13 runs in 17‰ innings in his three starts since.
“When I look at my numbers, I don’t give up a lot of hits. My average against hitters is pretty good,” said Darvish, whose .225 against is 10th in the NL. “And in my last 10 games, I’m not walking a lot of people [16].”
It’s the 20 home runs — already seven off his career high — that have him frustrated and his ERA looking so bad, he said.
“A lot of pitchers like [Justin] Verlander are giving up more homers than usual,” he said. “I just want to keep that to solo homers or less than solo homers. If I can do that, I can get more wins at Wrigley.”
Or maybe anywhere.
“Everything is good,” Darvish said of his physical and mental state. “It’s just pitch selection, but now me and [strategist Mike Borzello] and [pitching coach] Tommy [Hottovy] are talking about pitch selection and what pitches I have to use. Now I feel like everything’s coming together.
“Now I feel 100 percent, or more than that, best in my career.”
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