came out explosively Friday, leading the Texas Rangers to a 6-2 victory over the Houston Astros at home.
Darvish gave up only two walks, tied for his lowest in 13 games in the United States, and struck out 11 batters, tied for his most in the United States.
Texas coach Ron Washington was delighted. He said Darvish was “rocketing” the strike zone,
Darvish pitched eight innings, his second longest stay on the mound this season, allowing two runs on seven hits.
Darvish had eight days off rather than the usual five before this latest game. Coach Washington said the extra time was used to work on his fastball with pitching coach Mike Maddux.
“He had a good fastball working tonight,” Washington said. “Tonight, he went out there with a plan, followed through with it and he really did a good job.”
Designated hitter Michael Young said, “He was great. Any time he’s on the mound, we feel confident he’s going to do his job well.”
Darvish now has eight wins and four losses in 13 starts this season.
He still has a horrendous number of walks. But with only two given up Friday, he improved from #1 and worst in Major League Baseball to third in the rankings now.
