Padres place injured Darvish on restricted list

The San Diego Padres placed veteran right-hander Yu Darvish on the restricted list, they announced Wednesday.

Darvish had already been ruled out for the entirety of 2026 after he underwent reconstructive elbow surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament. The surgery was performed shortly after the Padres were eliminated from the playoffs.

However, placing Darvish on the restricted list instead of the 60-day injured list could have a dramatic impact on the Padres' 2026 roster. The move frees up a 40-man roster spot, and players on the restricted list aren't paid, meaning Darvish would essentially forfeit his $15-million salary if he remained there for the entire season. The Padres could then spend that money elsewhere.

Several established rotation arms, including former All-Star Lucas Giolito, remain available in free agency.

Including Darvish's salary, San Diego is projected to enter the season with a payroll of slightly over $218 million, per Cot's Contracts. The team's competitive balance tax payroll sits north of $262 million, ranking sixth in baseball, according to Spotrac.

In January, the five-time All-Star publicly denied reports that he was retiring and voiding the $43 million remaining on his contract. At the time, his agent Joel Wolfe called his possible retirement "a complicated matter we are still working through."

Darvish is entering the fourth season of a six-year, $108-million extension with San Diego. The 39-year-old finished eighth in NL Cy Young voting in 2022, the year before he signed the extension, but hasn't made more than 24 starts in a season since then. Last year, he didn't debut until July because of injuries and then put up a 5.38 ERA with a career-low 8.5 K/9 rate over 72 innings down the stretch.

San Diego signed veterans Germán Márquez and Walker Buehler this winter to fill out its rotation with Darvish, Joe Musgrove, and Griffin Canning all sidelined. Canning and Musgrove were among eight players whom the team placed on the IL ahead of its season opener Thursday against the Detroit Tigers.

The Padres also selected Buehler and first baseman Ty France to their active roster Wednesday.