MLB Clears Yu Darvish After Brother's Gambling Arrest
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ARLINGTON (AP) - Major League Baseball has determined Texas Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish had no role in any of the activities that led to the arrest of his brother in Japan for allegedly running an illegal gambling ring.
MLB was looking into the October arrest of Sho Darvish as part of standard protocol and not investigating the pitcher, according to the person who spoke Monday on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press because MLB and the Rangers have not publicly released the findings.
The person said the investigation found no involvement by Yu Darvish.
Sho Darvish was arrested after he reportedly took about 1,850 bets on MLB games as well as professional baseball games in Japan. His arrest came after a police investigation in Japan that lasted more than a year.
It was unclear if any bets were taken on games involving the Rangers. The Japan Times said Osaka police have not accused Yu Darvish of any wrongdoing.
Yu Darvish issued a statement last week that he understood that MLB had to look into the situation, and was confident he would be cleared.
"I am certain that they will find that I had no involvement in this matter whatsoever," Darvish said in the statement through his representatives at the Wasserman Media Group.
The pitcher also said he would have no other comment on the situation out of respect for MLB, and that he was focused on preparing for the 2016 season.
Darvish missed all of last season after having ligament replacement surgery during spring training. The 29-year-old Darvish is not expected to be ready for the start of the season, but could be back sometime in May.
The Rangers signed Darvish from Japan before the 2012 season. In 83 starts from 2012-14, Darvish was 39-25 with a 3.27 ERA, with 680 strikeouts and 218 walks in 545 1-3 innings pitched.
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