Yu Darvish is unquestionably the most highly touted pitcher to come out of Japan since Daisuke Matsuzaka, but one of latter’s former teammates believes that names like Matsuzaka’s should serve as a reminder to temper our expectations.
Curt Schilling, in a recent interview on ESPN Radio 103.3’s “The Ben & Skin Show” saw firsthand how difficult the transition from Japan to the Major Leagues is with Matsuzaka in Boston, and he isn’t exactly brimming over with confidence that Darvish can buck the trend of Japanese pitchers being unable to have any sustained success stateside.
"It’s just a different world and I haven’t seen it transition consistently, yet, because it’s a different game, it’s a different speed, it’s a different level of competition," Schilling said, via the Dallas Morning News. "And you’re taking a guy who in his mind, I think he believes he’s one of the best in the world, which is something you need, and you’re asking him to change everything and that doesn’t generally tend to translate very well."
All that said, if it were between going out and getting Darvish and shelling out the money to keep CJ Wilson in town, Schilling said he (like the Rangers) would opt for Darvish, “no question.”
"[Wilson] didn’t pitch when they needed him most," Schilling said. "October’s when great pitchers step up and lead pitching staffs. I didn’t see anything that led me to believe that he was a guy that was going to carry a staff through the playoffs. … He’s not a No.1."
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