The Texas Rangers have had two types of news items these past two seasons: bad and worse. Their latest news is probably in the "worse" category.
The team released a statement on Saturday indicating that ace pitcher Yu Darvish appears to have suffered damage to his ulnar collateral ligament. It now appears that ligament reconstruction surgery is a possibility. For the lay person, that is Tommy John surgery. National MLB reporter Jesse Sanchez posted the press release (as a photo) from the Rangers via Twitter.
The Rangers had horrible injury luck in 2014 with new acquisitions 1B Prince Fielder and OF Shin-Soo Choo suffering injuries and eventually being shut down. They also lost LHP Derek Holland and 2B Jurickson Profar before the season even began. Darvish himself was shut down toward the end of the year as the Rangers sunk to the worst record in the American League.
Things are not looking better in 2015 as Darvish was expected to cement the role of "ace" in a division full of balanced teams. The team will seek a second opinion before moving toward surgery, but the MLB.com report and Darvish's own comment at the end seems to indicate that surgery is highly likely.
MLB.com's Paul Cassilla quoted that Darvish comment as the Rangers' #1 pitcher discussed the possibility of missing 2015. Said Darvish,
"I will be disappointed if I have to miss the season, but I want to look at all options, including getting a second opinion, before I make a final decision. In the meantime, my heart is with my teammates, and our focus remains on accomplishing our goals for the season."
So far, it appears that the injury bug did not get its fill in Arlington last year as it is still biting the Rangers in this new season.