Yu Darvish Trade Rumors: Dodgers Reportedly Have 'Strong Interest' in Star SP

The Los Angeles Dodgers are reportedly showing "strong interest" in Texas Rangers starting pitcher Yu Darvish, according to Jon Morosi of the MLB Network.

Morosi noted several other teams are interested in Darvish and that "talks remain in early stages."

Morosi reported Friday and Saturday that the Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros also scouted Darvish.

Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports noted Friday that the New York Yankees like Darvish too and that "Texas hasn't committed to selling yet, but trending that way."

On Sunday, Buster Olney of ESPN.com reported "general manager Jon Daniels signaled to the industry that he would take phone calls on Darvish."

Olney added:

"Some think that the question of trading or not trading him will come down to whether the Rangers think they'll be able to re-sign him. If they think they'll re-sign him, some evaluators believe, the Rangers will keep him through the trade deadline and keep him as part of the long-shot attempt to make the playoffs this year.

"If the Rangers think Darvish is going to leave, then they're almost certainly going to trade him, those evaluators believe."

Mike Petriello of MLB.com, meanwhile, thinks Darvish's pending free agency could affect his value:

The Rangers have struggled in 2017, going just 47-50 entering Sunday. A division title is certainly out of the question, as Texas trailed Houston by 18 games, though a postseason berth wouldn't be improbable; the Rangers are 3.5 games out of a wild-card berth.

Nonetheless, the team will have to decide whether it wants to be buyers or sellers before the trade deadline. Darvish would be an appealing asset to deal if it goes the latter route. The 30-year-old is 6-8 with a 3.44 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 143 strikeouts in 133.1 innings.

Los Angeles could certainly use another top-end arm to pair with Clayton Kershaw. While Alex Wood has been fantastic and Rich Hill, Brandon McCarthy and Kenta Maeda have been solid for the 67-31 Dodgers, another ace who can also eat innings would be an excellent addition for the team as it seeks its first World Series berth since it last won it all in 1988.