Rangers ace Yu Darvish is close to starting his first regular season game since 2014.
After undergoing Tommy John surgery 14 months ago, Darvish is set to make his season debut next Saturday, according to Fox Sports.
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Darvish will make his fifth rehab start Sunday, and if all goes well his next start after that will be for the Rangers.
The Rangers (24-19) are ranked 18th in team ERA this season, so Darvish's return could help bolster a stagnant rotation. It may be a while before he regains his form, but the last time we saw him he went 10-7 with 182 strikeouts in 144 1/3 innings pitched. The year before that, he struck out 277 batters in 209 2/3 innings.
Texas could try to juggle a six-man rotation when Darvish returns. They could also move struggling Derek Holland or Martin Perez into the bullpen.