It looks increasingly likely that a deal is going to get done between the Texas Rangers and Japanese pitcher Yu Darvish prior to the Wednesday deadline. Interestingly, the two sides currently don't see eye-to-eye on the length of the contract, with the Rangers actually asking for six years, while Darvish only wants five.
↵It seems a bit riskier for the Rangers to give six years, and they're apparently insisting on it. If Darvish goes the way of Daisuke Matsuzaka, then a sixth year will obviously look very bad. I'm sure that Jon Daniels and the front office are well aware of that, and that they're willing to give Darvish six years speaks volumes of their opinion of Darvish.
↵Still, I'm not sure that the extra year of control is worth the overall risk. Not only will a five year deal seemingly get Darvish to sign, but it helps mitigate Texas' risk in this ever so slightly.
↵↵