It's been speculated for months now, really, and as of Monday afternoon, it's official: Yu Darvish and Cliff Lee will face off on March 31 at Globe Life Park as the Opening Day pitching matchup when the Texas Rangers open the season against the Philadelphia Phillies.
Lee, of course, was the Rangers' savior in 2010 and spent four months with the Rangers before moving on and being replaced the next season by, you guessed it, Yu Darvish.
So let's take a look at the tale of the tape with less than two weeks before the headline grabbing matchup.
Age
Darvish: 27
Lee: 35
2013 stats
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Darvish: 13-9, 2.83 ERA, 277 strikeouts, 209 2/3 innings, 32 starts, 11.9 strikeouts/9 innings
Lee: 14-8, 2.87 ERA, 222 strikeouts, 222 2/3 innings, 31 starts, 9 strikeouts/9 innings
Cy Youngs
Darvish: 0
Lee: 1 (2008)
Rangers legend status
Darvish: Working on it with a great chance to end up being the greatest Rangers starter of all-time
Lee: He was gone as quickly as he was here, but while in Texas, Lee was a cult figure and led the Rangers to their first postseason series win and first World Series
Ovation meter
Darvish: There's no question he'll get the louder cheers as he's now become a hero in DFW
Lee: He won't get Josh Hamilton treatment, and shouldn't. He should be lauded, and will. He helped — who are we kidding, he did — turn this franchise around the proverbial corner. He made a personal decision to pitch elsewhere following the 2010 season, turning down a longer term from Texas than what he got from Philadelphia, and shouldn't be vilified for it.
