PEORIA, Arizona (Kyodo) -- San Diego Padres right-hander Yu Darvish said Thursday he welcomes the Los Angeles Dodgers strengthening their roster in the offseason and looks forward to resuming the National League West divisional rivalry between the clubs.

The Dodgers, featuring Japanese stars Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, were 3-2 winners against the Padres in last year's NL Division Series.

They have since added the likes of two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell and another of Darvish's Samurai Japan teammates, 23-year-old pitching phenom Roki Sasaki, who chose Los Angeles after being pursued by multiple clubs.

"It's better to have stronger opponents," Darvish said at the Padres' spring training facility in Peoria, Arizona.

While the eventual World Series champion Dodgers trumped San Diego in the playoffs, Darvish was quick to point out that the Padres came out ahead 8-5 in their regular season meetings.

"We played well against them last year. I hope we can do similarly against them this year," he said.

The veteran pitched strongly against the Dodgers in the NLDS, holding one of MLB's strongest batting lineups to three runs over 13-2/3 innings.

"I still felt like I had room to improve," Darvish said. "I'm eager to take on other teams, not only the Dodgers. I'm really looking forward to it."

The 38-year-old Darvish, now in his 21st season as a pro, is the oldest member of the San Diego roster. He is determined to maintain his health and keep his place in the starting rotation this year.

"I want to avoid injuries as much as possible and start around 33 games," he said.