Do Chicago Cubs fans hate Yu Darvish?

With Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Yu Darvish on the disabled list now for the second time, have the fans already given up on him?

The Chicago Cubs were certainly hoping for more than this. Yu Darvish, just about a third of the way through his first season with the club, has now made more appearances on the disabled list than he has wins.

Yes, Darvish only has a single credited win to his name in 2018 and is now currently serving his second stint on the DL due to pain in his triceps. An MRI revealed that Darvish has inflammation in his triceps, and nothing more, which is certainly good news for the Cubs.

But, assuming Darvish goes about his rehab and conditioning properly and comes back healthy, what good is that going to do the team with how ineffective he’s been? It has been a tough stretch for Darvish thus far, who is most famous for his atrocious fifth innings in a Cubs uniform.

One of Darvish’s closest friends on the team, Chris Gimenez, told the Chicago Sun Times Wednesday that he thinks the tough start has really taken a toll on him:

"“I think he thinks that Chicago hates him for going on the DL a couple of times.”More from Da Windy City3 takeaways from Chicago Blackhawks shootout loss to NashvilleChicago Cubs in the middle of chaos that is Shohei Ohtani’s free agencyThe Chicago Cubs are on a roller coaster of emotions chasing Shohei OhtaniChicago Bears quietly compiling list of head coaching candidatesChicago White Sox News: Erick Fedde signs two-year deal"

That’s an interesting take. Gimenez used a pretty strong word to describe how Darvish perceives Cubs fans’ impression of him. The catcher went on to speak of how he encouraged Darvish:

"“I’ve tried to portray to him, ‘Listen, they’re going to love you when we get to October and we’re doing the things that we all want to do here, you’re the main reason we’re doing it and we’re riding you all the way through it.”"

Gimenez has a point. Fans are going to love you the moment you begin to see success on the mound. It’s the same with any sport, regardless of city and regardless of team. In today’s society, we have become so engulfed in the here-and-now mentality.

What have you done for me lately? What can you do for me right now?

These are questions we are accustomed to asking our favorite teams and players. Unfortunately, for some of the players, fans tend to take it out via social media — and most players see a fair share of that kind of stuff.

"“He reads Twitter. He reads all that stuff,” Gimenez said. “We all do. Honestly, I know it upsets him — and rightfully so.”"

So, do Chicago fans hate Darvish? I cannot speak on behalf of an entire fan base. I can say that I, msyelf, am a bit disgruntled with his performance thus far — and I think that’s a fair assessment.

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I think what’s best for the fans and the organization, at this point, is to embrace the Darvish situation right here and right now. Look, he’s going to be around for a while barring anything crazy happening. He signed a long-term deal that most teams wouldn’t touch after seeing his 2018 performance so far. All there is to do, for now, is to hope he gets healthy and can return to the best form he can be in when it’s time to make a run.