CHICAGO (AP) — Yu Darvish and the Chicago Cubs have finalized their $126 million, six-year contract, by far the largest deal in a slow-moving free agent market.
The agreement announced Tuesday topped outfielder Lorenzo Cain’s $80 million, five-year deal with the Milwaukee Brewers.
In addition, the Los Angeles Angels gave outfielder Justin Upton a $106 million, five-year contract in November before he could become a free agent.
Darvish joins a rotation that includes Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks, Jose Quintana and Tyler Chatwood, who agreed to a $38 million, three-year contract in December.
A four-time All-Star with the Texas Rangers, Darvish finished last season with the Los Angeles Dodgers, helping them knock out the defending champion Cubs in the playoffs to reach the World Series. The 31-year-old Japanese right-hander is expected to take the rotation spot of Jake Arrieta, who became a free agent.
Darvish went 4-3 with a 3.44 ERA in nine starts with the Dodgers down the stretch. He shut down the Cubs in Game 3 of the NLCS, striking out seven while pitching 6 1/3 innings of one-run ball in a 6-1 victory at Wrigley Field.
But Darvish was hit hard in the World Series against Houston, managing just five outs in each of his two starts — including a Game 7 loss.