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Following a day off, the Texas Rangers begin a three-game set with the Toronto Blue Jays at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. LHP Derek Holland will face RHP Brandon Morrow. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM and TXA-21. Here’s a closer look at the pitchers:

PODCAST
Rangers GM Jon Daniels discusses the team's recent struggles, the interest level in Roy Oswalt and more. Listen

Holland (3-3, 4.27 ERA): Holland looks to bounce back from his last start Saturday against the Houston Astros. He allowed five runs on five hits -- three of them were home runs -- in five innings during the 6-5 loss. …Holland is 1-1 with a 2.95 ERA in his last three starts, dropping his ERA from 5.13 to 4.27. … He pitched a complete game shutout on 95 pitches last season in his last matchup against the Blue Jays on July 30 at the Rogers Centre. … Holland is 2-1 with a 5.55 ERA in five games against the Blue Jays.

Morrow (5-2, 2.63 ERA): Morrow is off to an impressive start this season. In his last outing, he had a complete game shutout against the New York Mets on Saturday. … He’s 3-0 with a 0.63 ERA on the road in four starts with a .156 opponent batting average. … Morrow picked up a win in his last start against the Rangers on July 31 last season. He allowed two runs on six hits in seven innings and struck out 11. … In seven games against the Rangers, Morrow is 3-3 with a 5.46 ERA. … He’s 1-2 with a 7.71 ERA in four appearances at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. … Morrow’s ERA ranks sixth in the American League and his 0.96 WHIP is fourth best in the AL.

Hitters: Ian Kinsler (6-for-16), Michael Young (6-for-15), David Murphy (4-for-11) and Elvis Andrus (3-for-7) have been the most successful against Morrow. Nelson Cruz (1-for-13), Mike Napoli (2-for-14) and Josh Hamilton (2-for-9) have struggled. … The Blue jays have a .256 batting average and .329 slugging percentage against Holland. … The Blue Jays’ No. 3, 4 and 5 hitters Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion and J.P Arencibia are 6-for-23 against Holland with zero home runs and five strikeouts. … Adam Lind has the most hits on the Blue Jays off Holland (4-for-12).

Up Next:

Sat. vs. Tor.: RHP Colby Lewis (4-3, 3.30) vs. RHP Henderson Alvarez (3-4, 3.30), 2:05 p.m., ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM/1540/FSSW
Sun. vs. Tor.: RHP Yu Darvish (6-2, 3.05) vs. RHP Kyle Drabek (4-4, 3.27), 2:05 p.m., ESPN Dallas 103.3/1540/FSSW
Mon. vs. Sea.: LHP Matt Harrison (5-3, 4.72) vs. RHP Kevin Millwood (3-4, 3.72), 7:05 p.m., ESPN Dallas 103.3/1540/FSSW/MLB Network

ADDISON, Texas -- Join us for a live in-game chat during the Texas Rangers-Toronto Blue Jays game. If you can stop by during lunch, come over to Buffalo Wild Wings in Addison and participate in the chat with us (yes, you can bring your phone or computer if you like and chat with us in person and with other folks online). The room is now open for you to post early questions and participate in polls. We'll start chatting around game time at 11:37 a.m. (game is on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM and FSSW).

The Texas Rangers lost the second game of this series, 8-7, to the Toronto Blue Jays after leading 6-4 in the seventh. The Rangers rallied in the ninth with two outs, putting two men on base with singles from Ian Kinsler and Elvis Andrus off Francisco Cordero. Michael Young, 5-for-his-last-35 overall, delivered a RBI single to tie the game, but Brett Lawrie hit a walk-off home run to lead off the bottom of the ninth inning off Mike Adams.

Road trippin’: The Rangers have a 9-and-2 record on the road this season, including 1-and-1 on this trip.

Starting lineup: For a second consecutive game, Josh Hamilton was not in the starting lineup due to his day-to-day status with his back. Adrian Beltre also was kept out of the starting lineup due to general soreness. Alberto Gonzalez started at third base and knocked in the Rangers' first run with an RBI single to right field in the second inning. Beltre pinch hit for Craig Gentry in the ninth but struck out.

PODCAST
Ron Washington on Neftali Feliz and the Rangers' 8-7 walk-off loss to the Blue Jays. Listen

E-6: After 54 consecutive errorless games dating back to last season, shortstop Elvis Andrus made his first error when he dropped a ground ball by Eric Thames to begin the seventh. The 54 games is a Rangers record for an everyday shortstop. That sparked a three-run, seven-batter inning for the Blue Jays to give them a 7-6 lead. Kelly Johnson drove in the go-ahead run with a single.

Life on the run: Kinsler scored one of the second-inning runs. He entered the game with a share of the Major League lead with 24 runs scored. Kinsler established a Rangers' record with 24 runs scored in April, surpassing the previous high of 23 set by Mark McLemore (1998) and Carl Everett (2003).

Batting around: In the top of the second inning, the Rangers batted around. The first four hits went the opposite way. Out of the nine batters, five had hits and five scored. Kinsler knocked in two with a double to right field.

Walk of life: Rangers starting RHP Neftali Feliz walked the No. 8 and 9 hitters in the Blue Jays lineup with one out in the third inning. After getting the second out, Feliz gave up back-to-back home runs to Kelly Johnson and Jose Bautista. Those cut the Rangers lead to 5-4. Feliz also walked the first two batters of the sixth inning on eight pitches (Johnson & Bautista), and then Robbie Ross came in from the bullpen. Feliz established a new career high with six walks.

Clubhouse leader: Feliz induced double plays in each of the first two innings and then added one more in the fifth. He is now the clubhouse leader among the Rangers starting pitchers with five double plays. Yu Darvish was the leader with three. After Feliz exited the game, Ross induced the fourth ground ball double play of the night.

Contact: After four strikeouts to begin the game, David Murphy had the Rangers' first hit -- a single. That hit ended a stretch for Murphy of 0-for-11.

A little more: Mitch Moreland’s ninth-inning grounder back to pitcher Rays closer Fernando Rodney on Sunday was first ruled an error on Rodney. It has been changed to an infield single.

Random ejection: Former Ranger and current Blue Jay Omar Vizquel was not in the starting lineup, but he was ejected in the bottom of the fifth by home plate umpire Sam Holbrook for arguing balls and strikes.

POM: Rangers media voted Hamilton as the Rangers Player of the Month. He matched a club record with nine home runs in April. This is the fifth time that Hamilton has earned this honor. Hamilton and Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers are the seventh and eighth players since 1921 to have a minimum of nine home runs, 25 RBIs, 20 runs scored and 34 hits in April.

Wednesday's game between the Texas Rangers and Toronto Blue Jays is at 11:37 a.m. on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM and FSSW. Since that's lunch, let's chat about it and eat at the same time.

I'll be at Buffalo Wild Wings in Addison (5000 Belt Line Rd #100, just off the Tollway) at 11:30 a.m. and would like to invite you to join me. If you can't stop by and say hello, please take some time off from work and get in the chat room as we talk about Rangers baseball.

It's a great chance to meet some of the other chatters in the room and enjoy baseball and wings. I hope to see some of you there.

Neftali Feliz returns to the mound after manager Ron Washington decided to skip his last scheduled start to keep his right-hander's arm fresh. Scott Feldman made a spot start in his place, but Feliz worked an inning out of the bullpen in a 7-3 win over the Yankees. Here's the matchup:

PODCAST
Rangers reliever Mike Adams dishes on the latest Rangers news including Yu Darvish's performance in Toronto, how he stays loose in the bullpen and more. Listen

Feliz (1-1, 3.00 ERA): Feliz is off to a good start this season and should be fresh after skipping a start. Feliz pitched an inning of relief, giving up a home run to Raúl Ibañez.

Drew Hutchison (1-0, 6.10 ERA): The 21-year-old rookie is making his third career start. He gave up two runs on six hits in five innings off work in his last start. This will be the first career home start for Hutchison.

Hitters: Rajai Davis is 3-for-5 against Feliz in his career. ...The rest of the Blue Jays' lineup is 0-for-12 with seven strikeouts.

Up next:

Wednesday vs. Toronto: LHP Matt Harrison (3-1, 3.38 ERA) vs. LHP Ricky Romero (3-0, 3.18 ERA), 11:37 p.m., ESPN Dallas 103.3/FSSW.
Friday vs. Cleveland: RHP Colby Lews (2-0, 2.00 ERA) vs. RHP Jeanmar Gomez (1-1, 2.35 ERA), 6:05 p.m., ESPN Dallas 103.3/TXA-21.

The Yu Darvish that dominated Japan for years and impressed the Texas Rangers enough to invest $51.7 million in a posting bid and another $56 million guaranteed for six years is the guy who has shut down the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays the past two starts.

Sure, we saw flashes of it in spring training and in his first three starts, but scouts and team officials expected Darvish would find a way to put it all together consistently. It appears he has figured that out.

He's getting ahead of hitters -- he threw first-pitch strikes to 20 of the 27 batters he faced. He's mixing up pitches and speeds and his breaking stuff has incredible movement. He made many of the Blue Jays hitters look silly on sliders (Nolan Ryan says it's Darvish's best pitch), cutters and curveballs Monday, going seven innings and allowing one run on four hits with nine strikeouts and two walks.

In his past two outings, Darvish pitched deep into the game (15 1/3 innings total) and struck out 19 with just four walks. He has done that and still managed to stay efficient. That's the guy the Rangers saw in Japan. He made one mistake Monday, hanging a slider to Edwin Encarnacion, Toronto's top hitter right now. That accounted for the lone run.

PODCAST
Ron Washington on Yu Darvish, Craig Gentry and the Rangers' 4-1 win in Toronto. Listen

Consider that after Darvish allowed five runs in the first two innings of his big league career, he has given up just three earned runs in the 31 innings after that for a 0.87 ERA. Wow.

Like any pitcher, Darvish will have some struggles here and there. But he had a long track record in Japan and looks a lot like that guy right now in the big leagues. There's no reason that can't continue. If you ask me, his best attribute is that he doesn't get rattled. He might walk a batter or hit somebody and get himself into trouble (like he did early Monday), but he calmly goes about his business. Darvish has shown a penchant for getting out of jams, especially in his last two starts.

Darvish is 4-0 through April. With the Rangers' offense behind him, there's no reason to think Darvish can't push toward 16 wins or better. And he has got to be one of the favorites for AL Rookie of the Year now, too.

How many games do you think Darvish wins? Is the Darvish we've seen the past two games the one that we'll see for most of the season?

Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton, who left Sunday night's game early with a stiff back, is out of the lineup for tonight's series opener at Toronto.

Craig Gentry starts in center field for Hamilton.

It's the first game of a 10-game road trip for the Rangers, who send Yu Darvish to the mound against Kyle Drabek. The game will be on ESPN and can be heard in the DFW area on KSKY 660 AM.

RANGERS
2B Ian Kinsler
SS Elvis Andrus
3B Michael Young
DH Adrian Beltre
LF David Murphy (L)
RF Nelson Cruz
C Mike Napoli
1B Mitch Moreland (L)
CF Craig Gentry

BLUE JAYS
SS Yunel Escobar
2B Kelly Johnson (L)
RF Jose Bautista
1B Adam Lind (L)
DH Edwin Encarnacion
LF Eric Thames (L)
3B Brett Lawrie
CF Colby Rasmus (L)
C J.P. Arencibia

Let's chat about tonight's game as we all watch it on TV (ESPN/FSSW) together. I'm not in Toronto, but that doesn't have to stop us from chatting as Yu Darvish takes the mound. The game starts at 6:05 p.m. and please note that it's on KSKY 660 AM with the Dallas Mavericks on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM (at 8:30 p.m., FYI). The room is now open for you to ask some early questions and participate in polls. We'll start chatting around the first pitch.

Yu Darvish returns to the mound for the first time since dominating the Yankees to the tune of 10 strikeouts in 8 1/3 scoreless innings in the series opener in Toronto. Here's the matchup:

PODCAST
Rangers president Nolan Ryan dishes on Josh Hamilton's injury, Yu Darvish's performance against the Yankees, Derek Holland's slump and more. Listen

Darvish (3-0, 2.42 ERA): Darvish baffled the Yankees with a full arsenal of pitches and lethal mix of velocity. Now that the baseball world has seen the caliber of pitcher Darvish can be, the Rangers are looking for a repeat performance against the struggling Blue Jays.

Kyle Drabek (2-1, 2.25): The youngster has pitched well so far this season, but command issues have forced a few early exits due to walks and high pitch counts. Drabek has been much worse at home than on the road. He has just one win in nine starts in Rogers Centre.

Hitters: In Drabek's only start against the Rangers, he gave up three runs off five hits over six innings of work in a 6-4 win. ...Michael Young went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles. ...Yorvit Torrealba went 2-for-4 with a home run. ...Nelson Cruz went 1-for-3 with a home run.

Up Next:

Tuesday vs. Toronto: RHP Neftali Feliz (1-1, 3.00 ERA) vs. RHP Drew Hutchison (1-0, 6.10 ERA), 6:00 p.m., KSKY 660 AM/FSSW.
Wednesday vs. Toronto: LHP Matt Harrison (3-1, 3.38 ERA) vs. LHP Ricky Romero (3-0, 3.18 ERA), 11:37 p.m., ESPN Dallas 103.3/FSSW.

The Texas Rangers head to Canada for a three-game set against the Toronto Blue Jays. Here are a few things to watch during the series:

* Yu Darvish headlines things with a start tonight against the team that was rumored to have put in the high posting bid before the Rangers surfaced as the winner back in December. ESPN Stats & Information shares this stat:

PODCAST
Rangers president Nolan Ryan dishes on Josh Hamilton's injury, Yu Darvish's performance against the Yankees, Derek Holland's slump and more. Listen

Darvish was known for his expansive repertoire when he arrived in Texas. He’s thrown at least 24 of SIX different types of pitches this season.

PITCHES THROWN THIS SEASON:
Fastball: 205
Cutter: 74
Slider: 73
Curveball: 52
Sinker: 24
Changeup/splitter: 24

* The Rangers enter the game leading the AL with a 2.89 ERA, fourth in the majors. It's just the fourth date in team history to have an ERA this low through at least 22 games. The other three dates came in 1983. The Blue Jays have a 3.78 ERA, fifth in the AL.

* Texas' starting rotation is tops in the AL with a 3.23 ERA, but the Blue Jays aren't far behind at 3.42 (tied for third).

* Edwin Encarnacion is Toronto's top producer, with seven homers and 20 RBIs to go along with a .310 average. He was just 5-for-30 against Texas pitching last year.

* Jose Bautista has just three homers so far in 2012 and is batting .190.

* This is Texas' third straight series against an AL East opponent. They are 5-3 against the division in 2012. The East owns four of the AL's six teams that are better than .500 this season. The Yankees and Rays are the only teams the Rangers have faced so far this season that are better than .500.

* Josh Hamilton comes in with a sore back and was taken out of Sunday's game. Watch to see if he plays. If he does tonight, he'll try to add to his ridiculous April numbers, which include nine homers and 25 RBIs. He's the first to hit at least that many homers and have that many RBIs in April since Alex Rodriguez in 2007. A-Rod won the MVP that season.

* Keep your eye on Elvis Andrus. He's hit save in three of four games and is 5-for-14 in that span. He's hitting .303 (20-for-66) in his last 17 games after starting the season slowly.

* Ricky Romero, 3-0, 3.18 ERA, is the Blue Jays' No. 1 pitcher and he'll go on Wednesday afternoon in the series finale.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- The Texas Rangers wave goodbye to the sellout crowds at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington for a 10-game, 11-day road trip through Toronto, Cleveland and Baltimore.

This week, it's three in Toronto, an off day and three in Cleveland. A few things to watch:

* Josh Hamilton's back. He says it's no big deal and expects to play Monday. But there is turf in Toronto, so look for the Rangers to be careful. One option is to play him at DH or sit him for one of the games to be sure he's OK. But Hamilton said he's had the back spasm before and it loosens up after 12 hours or so.

* The hottest hitter on this Texas team right now besides Hamilton might be Elvis Andrus. The shortstop was 7-for-21 on this home stand with four stolen bases. Watch to see if Andrus continues to work counts. He had some long at-bats the last few games and is showing solid plate discipline.

* Michael Young came into the homestand off a road trip where he tore the cover off the ball. But things didn't go as well at home. He was 3-for-23 (.130) in the six games with the Yankees and Rays with just one RBI. He's still batting .329 on the season, but maybe the road will get him going again.

* Mike Napoli has also struggled of late. He was 4-for-17 (.235) with 10 strikeouts while the club was at home. This came after he had a homer streak during the last road trip.

* Yu Darvish starts Monday and looks to build off his sensational start against the Yankees last Tuesday. He pitched 8 1/3 scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts and two walks.

* Adrian Beltre had a very solid homestand, making his usual plays in the field but adding some clutch hits. He was 6-for-20 with two homers and six RBIs.

* Nelson Cruz had his first multi-hit game Sunday since the doubleheader in Detroit, possibly a sign that he's getting more comfortable at the plate. He admitted that he didn't feel great up there during the Yankees series.

* RHP Mike Adams allowed a run in the eighth inning of Saturday's game (the Rangers had a big lead) and has allowed a run in just two of his 10 appearances.

The Texas Rangers have hired former All-Star shortstop Tony Fernandez as the special assistant to general manager Jon Daniels, it was announced Wednesday morning.

"We're excited to welcome Tony to our organization,” Daniels said in a statement. “His work ethic and performance on the field are matched only by his grace and commitment to the community. He'll be able to help our players in a number of ways."

Fernandez, a five-time All-Star and four-time Gold Glove winner, had a 17-year major league career with Toronto (1983-90, 1993, 1998-99, 2001), San Diego (1991-92), the New York Mets (1993), Cincinnati (1994), New York Yankees (1995), Cleveland (1997), and Milwaukee (2001). He had a .288 average in 2158 major league games, compiling 2276 career hits.

Texas Rangers reliever Koji Uehara refused a trade to the Toronto Blue Jays, according to a source. Uehara has a limited no-trade clause that includes six teams and Toronto is one of those.

Reports in Japan earlier Tuesday first noted Uehara had refused a trade to the Blue Jays. The Rangers continue to talk to other teams about Uehara, who is slated to make $4 million this season.

A report in Japan said Uehara didn't want to move his family from Baltimore to Toronto.

Uehara struggled with the Rangers after the club obtained him at the trade deadline last year. He was 1-2 with a 4.00 ERA in 18 innings (22 games) and then wasn’t able to get it done in the playoffs. After allowing five earned runs in 1 1/3 postseason innings in the ALDS and ALCS, Uehara was left off the World Series roster.

The Rangers have talked to other clubs about trading reliever Koji Uehara, according to sources.

Reports surfaced earlier in the evening from Japan, saying the club was talking with the Blue Jays about a trade for Uehara. The pitcher has a limited no-trade clause in that he can block a deal to six teams.

The fact that the Rangers are talking about moving Uehara isn't surprising. They've got other right-handed arms for the late innings and Uehara is slated to make $4 million in 2012 after vesting his option during the 2011 season.

Uehara had a 1.72 ERA with Baltimore before the Rangers traded for him just before the trade deadline. He was 1-2 with a 4.00 ERA in 18 innings (22 games) in the regular season. He pitched in just three postseason games and gave up a home run in each of those outings (one against Tampa Bay and the other two against Detroit in the ALCS). His struggles -- 5 earned runs in 1 1/3 playoff innings (11 batters faced, five hits allowed, two walks) -- forced the club to leave him off the World Series roster.

Michael Young finished eighth in voting for the American League MVP award and was one of four Texas Rangers to receive votes.

Detroit Tigers pitcher and Cy Young winner Justin Verlander completed the rare double-double by winning the AL MVP on Monday afternoon, beating out Jacoby Ellsbury of the Boston Red Sox. Verlander garnered 13 first-place votes, nine more than Ellsbury and eight more than third-place finisher Jose Bautista of the Toronto Blue Jays.

For the complete MVP voting, click here.

Young, who recorded career bests with a .338 average and 106 RBIs as the designated hitter and super-utility infielder, got one first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth-place vote, plus four seventh-place votes, seven votes for eighth, four for ninth and two 10th-place votes. He was the only player to receive at least one vote in slots one through 10.

Second baseman Ian Kinsler, who completed the second 30-30 season of his career, finished 11th in the voting. He received two sixth-place votes and one fifth, seventh, eighth and ninth-place vote.

Adrian Beltre placed 15th with two eighth-place votes and one ninth and 10th-place vote. Despite missing five weeks with a hamstring injury, Beltre hit .296 with 32 homers and 105 RBIs.

The 2010 AL MVP, Josh Hamilton, received one 10th place vote.

The Rangers' four players to receive votes was tied for second with the Tigers behind the New York Yankees' five.

Mike Napoli, who notched career-bests with a .320 batting average, 30 home runs and 75 RBI, did not receive any votes, likely because he managed all that damage in just 369 at-bats and 113 games.