The San Diego Padres are off to a solid start to the 2024-25 season. After a bizarrely quiet offseason and a disappointing playoff loss, they started hot and have kept pace in the NL West. Pitching is a big question for San Diego, as Michael King and Dylan Cease are pending free agents. But the Padres could be getting Yu Darvish back from injury soon, helping answer that question. The Associated Press' Janie McCauley caught up with manager Mike Schildt after a recent Darvish bullpen.

“Came out of it feeling good, spoke with him yesterday after the game, he’s very encouraged,” Shildt said, per McCauley. “Came in earlier today and played catch. … He got off the mound again yesterday, so it’s three days in a row off the mound with some throwing, with a bullpen sandwiched in between. So, recovering, still throwing well. He has a plan for another bullpen, and then we’ll go from there. All favorable and trending in a good place.”

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Darvish has not pitched at all this season while dealing with elbow inflammation. He was solid for the Padres in 16 starts last season, posting a 3.31 ERA in the regular season. His playoff performances were tremendous, with a 1.98 ERA in two starts against the Dodgers. But at 38 years old, this injury could be tough to return from.

The Padres picked up Yu Darvish in a trade with the Chicago Cubs in the offseason before the 2021 season. He played out the final two years of that contract with San Diego and then signed a six-year contract. As Year 3 of that deal continues, the deal is not aging well. If he comes back this year, a rotation of King-Cease-Darvish-Nick Pivetta could be dynamic.

The Padres finish their series in San Francisco on Thursday and continue their road trip in Milwaukee this weekend.