Yu Darvish to be AL's safety net

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- American League manager Ron Washington said he plans to reserve Texas Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish as the "the last man standing" for the pitching staff in Tuesday's All-Star Game.

That means Darvish would be waiting in case he's needed for extra innings.

"He's the freshest guy we have, so we designated him as the last guy standing," Washington said. "He's had the most time down than anybody."

Darvish's last start was skipped to give the Japanese right-hander some extra rest through the All-Star break. He hasn't pitched in eight days.

Washington has some pitchers on the AL squad that threw a lot of pitches over the weekend, including Seattle Mariners ace Felix Hernandez, who threw 114 pitches Sunday.

Washington indicated he'd like to stay away from Hernandez and Chicago White Sox right-hander Jake Peavy, who pitched on Saturday, if possible.

"If we need them, they'll pitch," Washington said.

Washington also revealed his first three pitchers for the contest. Justin Verlander will pitch two innings as the starter, followed by Tampa Bay Rays left-hander David Price and Los Angeles Angels right-hander Jered Weaver for one inning each.

After that, Washington said he will assess the flow of the game and figure out how to line up the rest of the pitchers.

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Richard Durrett

ESPNDallas.com

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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.