Report: Rangers not expected to trade Darvish

Whenever a top flight player reaches the final year of a contract, trade rumors inevitably swirl. Texas Rangers ace pitcher Yu Darvish will be a free agent following the season. He's going to get paid.

But that doesn't mean the Rangers are going to lend him to a contender, even if they fall out of the race by the non-waiver trade deadline.

Sources tell Yahoo Sports' Jeff Passan that Darvish is "very likely" to finish the season as a member of the Rangers. The team is also, understandably, very interested in re-signing Darvish.

Darvish will have many suitors despite turning 31 in August. In parts of five seasons, all with the Rangers, he's tallied a 52-35 record with a 3.30 ERA. He threw 209 2/3 innings in 2013, striking out an MLB-high 277 batters that year. His career K/9 is 11.1. That he throws a wide variety of pitches at various speeds only enhances his value.

Passan points out, however, that historical precedent isn't in the Rangers' favor. Darvish could command a deal in excess of $100 million. Only 11 contracts of this magnitude have ever been extended to pitchers, including Max Scherzer, David Price, and Zack Greinke (twice).

All 11 signed with a different team than they were with before hitting free agency.

Darvish's durability and injury history are cause for concern. He missed the entire 2015 season, and parts of 2014 and 2016, due to injury. He has only finished seven innings in six of 15 starts this season, though he's also only allowed more than three runs on three occasions.

Possible terms and destinations remain purely speculative, and perhaps there is a trade offer that blows Rangers brass away, but Darvish remains in Texas for now and is expected to be there through the end of the season.