Kamil Krzaczynski/AP
If the Cubs’ opening-round playoff series with the Padres goes to a winner-take-all third game, they’ll see a familiar face on the mound.
Right-hander Yu Darvish, who spent three seasons on the North Side, will be the Padres’ starting pitcher for an if-necessary Game 3.
The Cubs inked Darvish to a big-money free-agent deal before the 2018 season but shipped him to the Padres in a seven-player trade three seasons into the contract.
Darvish’s finest year in a Cubs uniform came in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, when he posted a 2.