Yu Darvish might not make himself available until January - MLB

FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal heard Saturday that Japanese ace Yu Darvish is expected to be posted soon after this week’s annual Winter Meetings in Dallas, Texas. But that might not be the case.

In an update to his Saturday column, Rosenthal writes that Darvish’s father is telling news services in Japan that his son might not make himself available to major league teams until mid-to-late January and that it’s only 50-50 that he actually accepts a deal.

The uncertainty is natural — Darvish would be leaving his comfort zone in Japan and taking on great expectations in the majors — but waiting until a month or so before the start of spring training would almost certainly mean disaster for the right-hander’s market value. MLB teams can’t afford to be patient when it comes to filling vacant starting rotation spots.

Darvish, 25, posted an 18-7 record, a 1.44 ERA and a 276/36 K/BB ratio across 232 innings this past season for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. He has a 1.99 career ERA over seven seasons in Japan.

CLEARWATER, Fla. — Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins needs surgery for a torn ACL after injuring his left knee Thursday fielding a grounder in a spring training game and is expected to miss a significant amount of time.

The Phillies did not say when Hoskins would have the surgery or exactly how long the slugging first baseman might be sidelined.

Hoskins hit 30 homers with 79 RBIs last season for the reigning National League champions.

He was backing up to play a chopper on Thursday when the ball popped out of his glove. Sooner after, he fell to the ground and began clutching his left knee. Teammates gathered around him before he was taken off of the field.

Hoskins, a free agent at the end of the season who turned 30 last week, hit six homers in Philadelphia’s playoff run last season. The Phillies lost to the Houston Astros in the World Series.

The injury was another blow for the Phillies, who will be without top pitching prospect Andrew Painter for another few weeks because of a sprained ligament in his right elbow. And slugger Bryce Harper isn’t expected back until around the All-Star break after undergoing Tommy John surgery in November.