What promise did he make with the owner who left, why did he refuse 5.3 billion won even though Darvish was sick? "First Time" Agent
Aug 27, 2024
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Darvish has suffered injuries since the beginning of the season this year. After playing against the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 15, he was placed on the injured list (IL) complaining of neck pain, returned on May 1 and threw five games, before being listed on the IL for the second time on June 2 due to a left groin injury. After about two weeks of rehabilitation, Darvish was briefly transferred to Single-A+ Fort Wayne TeenCams for a minor league appearance. And on June 20, he took the mound against the Wisconsin Timberrattles (under the Milwaukee Brewers) and showed a slump in allowing seven hits and six runs in three ⅓ innings.
Darvish has since disappeared from the squad. The San Diego club said on July 7 that `Darvish is listed in RL for personal matters.' Even the Japanese media have not been able to find out specifically what caused him to be away for a long time. In any case, he was transferred back to the IL on the 24th to prepare for his return.
According to the labor-management collective agreement, players will not receive an annual salary while they are listed in the RL. It is different from the IL. However, the San Diego club reportedly recommended Darvish to look at his personal history while he was still on the IL. In other words, he was injured anyway, so no matter how long it took, he was considered to receive an annual salary.
Darvish's agent Joel Wolf recently told The Athletic that `AJ Prelor, who would have been on the IL, tried to give Darvish every chance behind the scenes. "The 60-day IL registration was received by any player I commissioned..." Darvish refused. When he signed with San Diego, he said it was because of the promise he made with the late owner Peter Seidler and the general manager Prelor."
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Wolff said "Darvish didn't think it was right to get paid if he didn't even completely perform his rehabilitation for his return. That's why I tried to climb from RL myself. I've never seen such an example before."
I can't remember the example of a player on the RL team refusing to be compensated by the team's general manager, Prelor, who also told The Athletic. It was very unique to me" he recalled.
Darvish's annual salary this year is $25 million. The annual salary during the RL registration period is about $4 million (about 5.3 billion won), which means that Darvish gave up on his own.
Some say that Darvish's voluntary request for RL registration stems from his trust with General Manager Preller. The media outlet said 'Prelor called Darvish once a week to ask how he was doing while he was in RL. It was never a business."They've known each other for more than a decade since 2012 when Freeler worked at the Texas Rangers front office," he said.
Meanwhile, Darvish pitched three innings against single-A Lake Elsinore batters in a simulated game at Petco Park on the 26th. MLB.com reported that he had 13 out-counts and did not make a hit. His return goal is in early September.
jhno@sportschosun.com
