Yu Darvish Scratched
/It won't be a happy Yu Darvish Day after all, as Darvish has been scratched from tonight's start with reported neck stiffness.
The neck stiffness, of course, is what caused him to miss his first start of the season, and given his history of the same ailment, I'll be surprised if we're not looking at time on the DL and a lengthy examination to pinpoint what seems to be causing the problem.
He's headed for what the Rangers are calling a "precautionary" MRI. Given the frequent recurrence of the issue, the Rangers would be better served finding out what the deal is. If the symptoms indeed popped up when he woke up this morning as indicated, I can't emphasize enough how absurd it is that a well-paid athlete can't invest in a proper pillow and mattress.
I don't even know what else to say about this right now. This has gotten beyond ridiculous.
Now that I've had a good minute to process, I wanted to add why this issue concerns me so much.
Back in Darvish's rookie season, he was scratched from a late September start due to neck stiffness.
In 2013, neck stiffness stalled his preparation for the season during Spring Training, as he only reached 78 pitches before his perfect game bid against Houston. Near the All-Star break, he was once again sidelined with neck stiffness.
After opening this season on the DL, this recurrence of neck stiffness marks the 2nd time already that Darvish will miss at least one start. It's a worrisome trend that appears, at least for the time being, to have no answer.