He really knows how to pitch. In 5 seasons he is 76-28 as a starter with an ERA of an astounding 1.72. He compiled 1083 strikeouts (276 in 2011) while walking 221 (career low 36 in 2011). For those of us that like this stat, his career WHIP is 0.89. Yep, thats right, he is now a Ranger. People are saying he is just going to be the next Daisuke, but keep in mind, in 8 seasons in Japan, Matsuzaka never had an ERA below 2.00 (career in Japan 2.95). He is much better than Matsuzaka. And he is a Ranger. Will he be that impressive right off the bat? Nobody knows, but I for one trust the instincts of one Jon Daniels, so my gut says he will be pretty darn good. Better than C.J. anyway, and come on, that is what we were all thinking about anyway. So get ready for the Yu Darvish era in Texas, he signed for 6 years and $60 million. He and Beltre are guaranteed to be here for a while! For another good take on the Darvish signing go here.
Speaking of excitment about Darvish, don’t miss a very special episode of the Ranger Report Podcast tomorrow night at 9 pm ct with all the voices that you had come to love last season. Myself, Ross Lindsey, Chad Martin and the Nathan Hague will be entertaining your ears with lots of boring facts and even more opinions about one Yu Darvish, and we may even preview a song we are working on to welcome Yu here properly. Don’t miss it, tomorrow night. Thanks, as always for reading, and GO RANGERS!!
