Well, that was certainly fun, wasn't it? The first glimpses of Yu Darvish were exciting times for Rangers -- and baseball in general -- indeed, and those two innings Darvish pitched helped illustrate why Texas' front office was so high on him.
But now it's time to put Yumania aside -- for a little bit, at least. Darvish's next start won't come until March 13 against the Indians, and there are plenty of other storylines to keep tabs on in Rangers camp until then.
For starters, there is the centerfield job to keep an eye out on. Rangers manager Ron Washington has stated that he would like Leonys Martin to spend a full year year in the minors to develop, which is certainly logical given how much he struggled against more advanced pitching last year. This, of course, opens up the door for a centerfield competition between Craig Gentry and Julio Borbon. Further fuel into the fire came from Josh Hamilton, who says he'd prefer to play centerfield.
There's two other fairly major storylines in Rangers camp as well. 2010 Rookie of the Year award winner Neftali Feliz continues his transition to the starting rotation, where his potential can be fully maximized.
Of course, there's also the matter of Feliz' replacement in Joe Nathan, who looks like he is ready to make his spring debut, in what is an overhauled bullpen. Adam Morris of Lone Star Ball talked a bit about Texas' bullpen in his YouTube debut, specifically addressing Robbie Ross and Texas' unsettled LOOGY situation.
We're still a long way from Opening Day, and there's still a lot to be settled for the Rangers as Cactus League play continues on through March. Be excited for Yu, but also be excited for the rest of this Rangers team -- it's certainly going to be a fun spring and summer for Rangers fans.