Yu Darvish has three major contenders on his no-trade list

Texas Rangers starter Yu Darvish is one of the few pieces available at the trade deadline who can truly alter a division race. Though every contender would benefit from adding Darvish to their rotation, not all of them will have that chance.

If you’re a fan of the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs or Cleveland Indians, you can stop reading now. Those three clubs are among the 10 teams on Darvish’s no-trade list, according to Ken Rosenthal.

While all three of those teams could use Darvish, the blow hurts the most for Chicago. With David Price and Eduardo Rodriguez back and healthy, getting an ace like Darvish isn’t a priority for Boston. Cleveland is in a similar spot. As long as everyone stays healthy, that rotation is pretty strong.

The Cubs have been linked to Darvish even though they just traded for Chicago White Sox starter Jose Quintana. While Quintana and Jon Lester give the team a solid 1-2 punch, the rotation has been spotty behind those two. Jake Arrieta and Kyle Hendricks have seen some regression this season, though both are still sporting solid peripherals.

Darvish would definitely help, but there’s no need for the Cubs to get desperate after acquiring Quintana. The news may impact the team’s chances of pursuing Darvish in free agency, and that could wind up being the bigger blow.

It’s worth noting that Darvish could still go to those three clubs, but only if he’s willing to waive his no-trade clause and approve a trade.

As Rosenthal points out, fans of the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees and Houston Astros should start getting excited. Darvish cannot block trades to any of those clubs, and they all have desirable prospects needed to get a deal done.

The Dodgers have been linked to Darvish quite a bit, and their need for another starter just went up after Clayton Kershaw’s injury. New York has reportedly been in talks for Oakland Athletics ace Sonny Gray, but could turn their attention to Darvish if Gray proves to be too pricey.

The Astros have quietly put together a strong rotation, but it wouldn’t hurt to add Darvish. While Brad Peacock, Charlie Morton and Mike Fiers have all had strong seasons, they don’t exactly have dependable track records. A postseason rotation of Dallas Keuchel, Lance McCullers Jr. and Darvish would strike fear into opponents.

The rest of Darvish’s no-trade is … weird, right? It’s an interesting mix of some East Coast clubs, most of the Midwest and the A’s. We can’t say we’re surprised about that last one.

Darvish’s list does leave the opportunity for some fringe contenders like the Minnesota Twins, Kansas City Royals or Tampa Bay Rays to swoop in to try and pick up another ace. Those teams probably lack the prospects needed to get a deal done, though.

As weird as it would be to see Darvish in a Rays jersey, we can’t completely rule it out.

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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik

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