ARLINGTON, Texas – Yu Darvish leaned over and looked at his name and the No. 11 on the back of his Texas Rangers jersey. Then he looked up and smiled.
“Excited, that’s all I feel right now,” Darvish said through a translator. “Just excited going forward.”
Japan’s best pitcher is now officially a member of the two-time defending American League champions, with his formal introduction Friday night in Texas coming two days after the right-hander agreed to a six-year contract that guarantees him $56 million.
The 25-year-old Darvish, who exceled in Japan’s Pacific League the past seven seasons, said he wasn’t prepared to go into specifics about the several different reasons why he decided to make the move to United States now.
But he said he felt no pressure and planned to keep an open mind and be relaxed — with his new team and in a new country.
“I have no worries,” he said. “What I’m looking forward to is a different environment, a different league and different hitters. I’m looking forward to it full of excitement.”
There is a lot of excitement in Texas, where fans are hoping Darvish is the missing piece that will help lift the Rangers to their first World Series
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