MLB's Yu Darvish investigated after Brother's Gambling Arrest

Sho Darvish, the brother of famed Texas Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish, was recently arrested for operating an illegal gambling ring in Japan. The ring took bets on MLB and Nippon Professional Baseball games, and Japanese authorities want to make sure that Yu didn’t have anything to do with the matter.

At this time, the 3-time MLB All-Star is not accused of any wrongdoing. But according to the Japan Times, there are rumors that Yu could have helped his brother with insider information. Here’s an excerpt from the Japan Times piece:

Best-selling author Robert Whiting, who penned both “You Gotta Have Wa” and “Tokyo Underworld,” feels it is not much of stretch to think that Sho Darvish, who was 26 at the time of his arrest, may have turned to his older brother for information.

“Gambling on baseball in Japan exists, it always has existed, and always will,” says Whiting.

“As for (Yu) Darvish, you would have to say it was likely that he provided information, unwittingly I would have to assume (unless of course he is looking to supplement his income, which the last time I looked was about half of Masahiro Tanaka’s),” added Whiting.

“Anything Darvish would have to say about team injuries or health of the players could affect the possible outcome of a game and the betting line.”

Authorities state that Sho Darvish accepted “1,850 wagers valued at ¥10,000 each on pro games in both North America and Japan.” It’s unclear at this time whether any of the action was on Rangers games.

Yu Darvish sat out the entire 2015 MLB season following reconstructive surgery on his pitching arm. So the concern among Japanese authorities is not if Yu influenced games himself, but if he gave Sho any type of useful information.

According to Michael Teevan, MLB’s vice president for communications, the league is also looking into whether any wrongdoing took place on Yu Darvish’s behalf.

“We are aware of this situation and are looking into it, per our standard protocols,” says Teevan.

Baseball takes the matter of gambling very seriously, given that of the Chicago Black Sox were banned in 1919 for throwing the World Series. Pete Rose, the all-time MLB leader in hits with 4,256, is also banned from baseball for gambling on games as a Cincinnati Reds manager.

As for Yu Darvish’s career, he made the All-Star game in each of his first three seasons, boasting an impressive 39-25 record and 3.27 ERA during this time. Last year, when he sat out the entire season, is the only time that Darvish missed earning an All-Star nomination.

His salary with the Rangers is $10 million per year, which makes it seem unlikely that he’d risk his career to help Sho Darvish’s gambling ring.