Matchup: Yu Darvish vs. Bruce Chen
Darvish (13-9, 4.31 ERA): This will be Darvish's 25th start of the season and he's looking to continue a solid streak. ... Darvish has three straight quality starts and has pitched well recently, showing no signs of any lingering issues with his tight quad after a good showing last week against Tampa Bay. ... Darvish tossed seven shutout innings with 10 strikeouts in the 1-0 win over the Rays. ... Texas is 15-9 in Darvish's starts. ... He has an ML-high eight games of 10 or more strikeouts this season, the most ever by a Rangers rookie. ... He'll be facing the Royals for the first time in his career. When Darvish sees a team for the first time, he's 9-3 with a 3.07 ERA in 13 starts. ... After Monday's start, Darvish will have faced every AL team except Baltimore.
Chen (10-10, 5.13 ERA): He's coming off perhaps his best start of the season. ... Chen went eight scoreless innings on four hits in a 1-0 win over Detroit last week. ... The eight innings were the most he's thrown in 2012 and the first time since June that he'd pitched in at least seven innings. ... He was 3-1 with a 3.89 ERA in August after a rough July (0-3, 8.39 ERA). ... He got a win against the Rangers earlier this season, allowing one run on five hits in 6 2/3 innings in Arlington on May 14, a 3-1 victory for the Royals.
Hitters: Five healthy Rangers have at least four at-bats off Chen. Elvis Andrus is 0-for-4 against him, but Adrian Beltre (8-for-27), Ian Kinsler (3-for-4) and Michael Young (6-for-16) have hit him well. ... Darvish has never faced the Royals.
Up next:
Tue. at KC: LHP Matt Harrison (15-8, 3.30) vs. RHP Jeremy Guthrie (6-12, 5.48), 7:10 p.m., ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM/1540 AM/FSSW
Wed. at KC: RHP Ryan Dempster (9-6, 2.87) vs. TBA, 7:10 p.m., ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM/1540 AM/FSSW
Thu. at KC: RHP Scott Feldman (6-11, 5.01) vs. TBA, 7:10 p.m., ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM/1540 AM/FSSW
Richard Durrett
ESPNDallas.com
ABOUT THIS BLOG
Richard Durrett
Richard Durrett joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009. He writes about colleges, the Dallas Stars and the Texas Rangers. Richard spent nine years at The Dallas Morning News covering the Rangers, Stars, colleges, motorsports and high schools.
Tim MacMahon
Tim MacMahon joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009. Tim covers the Cowboys and Mavericks. He has covered the local sports scene from high schools to colleges to pros during his six-year tenure at The Dallas Morning News. MacMahon is a graduate of UNT.
103.3 FM ESPN PODCASTS
Play Podcast Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus joins Galloway & Company to discuss having Scott Boras as his agent, his new contract and having Jurickson Profar in the lineup.
Play Podcast Rangers manager Ron Washington joins Fitzsimmons & Durrett for his weekly visit to discuss Yu Darvish's pitch count and how he spends time in the clubhouse during weather delays.
Play Podcast Nolan Ryan joins Galloway & Company for his weekly visit to discuss the latest Rangers news.
Play Podcast Reid Ryan joins Fitzsimmons & Durrett to discuss his new position with the Houston Astros and whether he could see his dad, Nolan, joining him there in the future.
Play Podcast ESPN MLB Insider Jayson Stark joins Fitzsimmons & Durrett to discuss if the Rangers are the best team in baseball, what makes them so good and if he thinks the team will trade Jurickson Profar.
Play Podcast Jim Bowden joins Fitzsimmons & Durrett to discuss Ron Washington's decision to send Yu Darvish to the mound for the eighth inning Thursday night and how he would handle a situation like that if he were still a GM.
Play Podcast Randy Galloway, Matt Mosley and Glenn "Stretch" Smith discuss the latest Rangers news, including the Yu Darvish-Justin Verlander matchup.
Play Podcast Nelson Cruz joins Galloway & Company to discuss the Rangers' series in Oakland, his ups and downs at the plate and if the PED talks before the season were a distraction.
UPCOMING GAMES
| W-L | HM | AW | STK | L10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TEX | 30-17 | 15-7 | 15-10 | W1 | |
| SEA | 20-27 | 11-9 | 9-18 | L6 |
| W-L | HM | AW | STK | L10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TEX | 30-17 | 15-7 | 15-10 | W1 | |
| SEA | 20-27 | 11-9 | 9-18 | L6 |
| W-L | HM | AW | STK | L10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TEX | 30-17 | 15-7 | 15-10 | W1 | |
| SEA | 20-27 | 11-9 | 9-18 | L6 |
TEAM LEADERS
| WINS LEADER | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Yu Darvish
|
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| OTHER LEADERS | ||||||||||||
| BA | I. Kinsler | .302 | ||||||||||
| HR | N. Cruz | 11 | ||||||||||
| RBI | N. Cruz | 33 | ||||||||||
| R | E. Andrus | 29 | ||||||||||
| OPS | M. Moreland | .905 | ||||||||||
| ERA | Y. Darvish | 2.84 | ||||||||||
| SO | Y. Darvish | 91 | ||||||||||
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