How should Padres reintegrate Yu Darvish back into rotation?

As Yu Darvish heads to El Paso to begin a rehab assignment, the Padres headed into their weekend series against the Seattle Mariners with a 27-15 record. After an underwhelming offseason, they have been the story of the 2025 MLB season as they make claim to being the best team in the league thus far.

And with Darvish looking solid in his rehab assignment - he allowed two runs on two hits while sending four batters down on strikes - it should not be long until he rejoins the Padres in the ruthless battle in the National League West.

The Padres do have a problem on their hands though, albeit a good problem to have. They have the best rotation in MLB, with each starter having legitimate All-Star claims. Dylan Cease, Nick Pivetta, and Michael King are a three-headed monster that would evoke confidence going into any potential playoff series. Randy Vasquez has posted a 3.45 ERA, and Stephen Kolek has been nothing short of exceptional since stepping in as the fifth starter.

Some think Darvish's sole start for the Chihuahua's will be all that is required before rejoining the big league rotaton. If so, what is the best path forward for the Padres assortment of riches in the rotation?

The instinctive thought is to recommend a six-man rotation for the next month or two, for multiple reasons. The obvious one being that Darvish should be eased back into a full workload. There is definitely validity to that thought process, and it goes further when one considers the workload that the Padres' starters have had this season is more than the average rotation.

And while a month of more rest may seem like the obvious choice, there is also reason to maintain the status quo. This has been the best rotation in baseball and the routine they fall into in-between starts would be uprooted if a six-man rotation was used.

The other option would be to move one of Kolek or Vasquez to the bullpen or demote one to Triple-A. While they have both been exceptional, simply put they are not Yu Darvish. Making room for Darvish while maintaining the five-man rotation of Darvish-King-Cease-Pivetta-Kolek/Vasquez would be the best way to capitalize on the talent the Padres possess.

To explain it simply, each pitcher in a 5 man rotation makes 32.4 starts over 162 games, while a six-man rotation garners 27 games per starter. Those extra five games go a long way over the course of a season, especially with the top-end talent residing in San Diego. In such a tight divisional race, those starts could be all the difference.

In the end, I believe the Padres would go to a six-man for two weeks, potentially through June. As stated, it allows Darvish to ease himself back into the grind of an MLB season. Padres starters could use the extra rest - and they have performed well when given an extra day of rest. In 8 starts where they get 6+ days of rest, Padres starters own a 2.78 ERA.

While the Padres do need the best team on the field as often as possible if they hope to win the NL West, they also need to ensure Darvish and the rest of their elite rotation reach October healthy and humming.