Royals Manager Thought Yu Might Go No-No on Monday

Rangers’ starter Yu Darvish was perfect through five and two thirds on Monday afternoon in Kansas City, but Royals’ manager Ned Yost said after the 8-4 Rangers victory that at a point in the game, he thought the 25-year-old Japanese national might be on his way to a No-No.

"In the third inning, I turned to Chino [Cadahia, bench coach] and said, 'Boy, this guy's got a shot at a no-hitter today,'" Yost told the Royals’ official website. "He was throwing a 97-mile-an-hour fastball, then a 95 that was cutting, sinking, and a 92-mph split. He had a 68-to-64-mph curveball. The variations on his speeds were tremendous, his command was excellent."

Darvish is now 14-9 in his first big league season, with a 4.29 ERA, and he appears to have gotten back on track over his past few starts, after struggling through much of August. The American League All-Star has gone seven innings in each of his last three outings, surrendering just six runs over the span--even more impressive, during this current run, Darvish has struck out 26 and walked just 4.