The announcement didn't generate much 'round these parts, but the man the Texas Rangers essentially traded for Yu Darvish retired this week. C.J. Wilson wants to be the next Danica Patrick. Or something.
Wilson was/is cocky and he had a big mouth, but in the end it turned out he was the better dollar-for-dollar deal than Darvish.
This was another high-dollar move for which Rangers GM/President/Assistant Manager Jon Daniels feels the burn. He fell in love with the big-name, hard thrower from Japan rather than simply appreciating what he already had in Wilson.
For you analytics geeks out there who howl at such an assertion, the numbers bear this out. Darvish has this season to prove adding him was the better move than letting Wilson walk.
Wilson got under your skin because he was unafraid of his opinion and talked liked he was a big-time No. 1, which shadowed the fact he was a good, No. 2 major league starter.
The Rangers were tired of dealing with his personality, which is only slightly ironic given the fact that they will let Darvish do whatever he wants.
Of the many good players who performed well here in DFW over the decades, Wilson ranks among the least appreciated ever. He was a terrible postseason pitcher, but the Rangers have not won a playoff series, or reached the World Series again, since he left.
In the December 2011, the Angels signed Wilson to a five-year, $77.5 million contract.
The Rangers were never serious about matching that offer to keep Wilson. They needed the necessary cash to make a run at Darvish, who at the time was the biggest Japanese export since the Honda Accord.
To make Darvish a Ranger the team paid $51.7 million in a posting fee for the rights to negotiate with him. He eventually agreed to a six-year, $60 million deal with the Rangers in January 2012.
That's $111.7 million in guaranteed money to complete this transaction; since his arrival he has been overpowering, and underwhelming.
He's a more talented pitcher than Wilson, but not $30 million better. It's apparent by now he's not the No. 1 hammer the Rangers planned on acquiring, and the clear upgrade over Wilson.
The amazing development since this pitching "exchange" was made was that Wilson turned out to be the better bargain.
In five years with the Angels, Wilson was 51-35 with a 3.87 ERA in 119 starts that covered 722 1/3 innings.
The 2015 season was the first time he had arm issues _ he had a shoulder deal _ that limited him to 21 starts. The injury essentially forced him to retire.
Until then he had been a consistent, and effective, No. 2/3 starter in Cali.
In that same time, Darvish is 46-30 with a 3.29 ERA in 100 starts that covered 645 2/3 innings. He missed the entire 2015 season because of Tommy John surgery, and thus far Darvish's strength is his ability to strike out the entire ballpark.
The overall production has not been that much better than Wilson, especially in the playoffs.
The knock on Wilson when he left town was that in the postseason he was good enough to get smacked.
Indeed, he was horrific in the postseason; in nine postseason starts with the Rangers, he won one game with an ERA over six. In four World Series starts with the Rangers, he was 0-2.
That was the reason the Rangers wanted away from Wilson. He was good enough to get you close. Kinda like a certain pitcher from Japan who "has five pitches" and can sling it 95 mph.
In Wilson's postseason place, Darvish is 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA. He's allowed seven earned runs in 11 2/3 postseason innings. Against Toronto in the 2016 ALDS, he tossed an effective batting practice session as he gave up four home runs in five innings.
Now, Darvish is younger _ he's 30 _ whereas Wilson is 36. No baseball fan who has watched these two men pitch could possibly say that Wilson is as talented as, or as good as, Darvish. He's not.
With great talent, and $30 million more counting on the books, comes hefty expectations. Both the Rangers, and their fans, expected more from Darvish than Wilson; we know he is the better pitcher.
Thus far Darvish has turned out to be a more dominant but only slightly better pitcher than Wilson.
The Rangers are going to make making every effort to re-sign Darvish, who can be a free agent after the 2017 season, but Darvish has this season to prove definitively he was the better than the race car driver he replaced.
Thus far the only difference is the size of the check, and the disappointment.
