What is Yu Darvish's Ethnicity? A Closer Look at The Origins of Yu-San

Yu Darvish was dominant in Game 1 of the NLDS last night, and even though he surrendered two home runs to Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber, Darvish struck out seven Philadelphia Phillies through 7.0 innings. Although the Padres lost their first game 2-0, Darvish's performance was the least concerning for San Diego.

"Yu Darvish about his friend Kyle Schwarber: “Next time I meet him I might have to punch him”" - Darnay Tripp

The 36-year-old All-Star continues to seek his first World Series title, and with the two top seeds in the National League (Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves) eliminated, this may be Darvish's best opportunity to finally win his World Series ring. If San Diego is able to win the World Series, Darvish will be the only 8th Japanese player to win baseball's ultimate prize.

As MLB continues to grow as an international game, some fans have grown curious about the ethnicity and background of their star players. Darvish falls into the category as fans have wanted to learn more about the life of the Padres ace.

"The International Tampa Bay Rays: for the 2nd time this season, the Rays have a full lineup with players born outside the US. CUB, CUB, DOM, COL, DOM, VEN, MEX, VEN, DOM" - Francys Romero

Darvish was born Farid Yu Darvishsefat in Osaka, Japan, in 1986 to a Japanese mother and Iranian father. After spending 7 seasons in Japan's top baseball league (Nippon Professional Baseball), Darvish signed with the Texas Rangers in 2012.

"On this date in 2012, @faridyu dominated the Tigers, striking out 10 and improving to 7-0 at home as the @Rangers top Detroit 7-4. #TogetherWe" - Bally Sports Southwest

Yu Darvish's MLB career

A 5-time All-Star, Darvish has had a successful MLB career even though he has struggled in the postseason. Since joining the MLB in 2012, Darvish has posted a career postseason record of 4-6 with a 4.33 ERA and 49 strikeouts.

While his numbers in his playoff stats are less than elite, Darvish has posted a 3.50 ERA while racking up 1,788 strikeouts throughout his 10-year major league career. As a professional between the NPB and MLB, Darvish has recorded 3,075 professional strikeouts, which would rank him 20th all-time in career Ks.

"Has Yu Darvish lived up the hype since coming to MLB in 2012?" - Chris Rose Sports

It may come as a surprise that Yu Darvish has only played in the MLB for 10 seasons, but as an international player, he did not make his major league debut until he was 25-years-old.

Regardless of the results of this year's postseason, Darvish has had a very successful career and will go down as one of the greatest Japanese pitchers in MLB history.