(670 The Score) The Cubs have received the worst-case news as it pertains to right-hander Yu Darvish's quest to rejoin the rotation this season.
An MRI revealed a stress reaction in his right elbow as well as a triceps strain for Darvish, and he'll subsequently be shut down for the final six weeks and miss the rest of the season, president of baseball operations Theo Epstein told reporters in Detroit on Tuesday afternoon. There's no damage to Darvish's ligament, Epstein said.
Worry permeated the Cubs when the 32-year-old Darvish abruptly left his rehab start at Class-A South Bend on Sunday after just one inning of work and 19 pitches. Darvish couldn't pinpoint exactly what was wrong, other than to say he felt similar discomfort as to what he felt after a rehab start in late June, after which he suffered a setback.
"I always listen to the player first, absolutely," manager Joe Maddon said on the Bernstein & McKnight Show earlier Tuesday afternoon before news of Darvish being out for the season broke. "He knows how he feels. If you just think about yourself, you know that better than anybody else. So I always listen to the player first. I never dispute or second-guess if somebody tells me they're injured. That's it."
Darvish has been sidelined since May 20 with right triceps soreness and an elbow impingement. He went 1-3 with a 4.95 ERA in eight starts after signing a six-year, $126-million deal with the Cubs in February.
News of Darvish's season being done comes just a week after the Cubs had expressed optimism about a potential return. Darvish was "feeling really good" after throwing a simulated game last week, Epstein previously said.
In other injury news, Cubs shortstop Addison Russell is dealing with a shoulder issue that kept him out of the starting lineup Tuesday.
