Shaking off Lucroy proves costly for Darvish in Rangers’ loss

Yu Darvish has been very particular in the past about which catchers work with him.

He was a big fan of Chris Gimenez in 2014, and Bobby Wilson had caught his first six starts this season.

Darvish worked Tuesday for the first time with Jonathan Lucroy, who made his Texas Rangers debut. Darvish found out how good Lucroy is, albeit in a 5-1 loss to the Baltimore Orioles.

Darvish pitched well, working into the seventh inning for the first time since Tommy John surgery, striking out nine and allowing three runs — all on solo homers.

Afterward, he had learned a valuable lesson.

“On those home runs, I probably shook it and then I gave up home runs,” Darvish said. “Maybe next time I should trust him more.”

Lucroy didn’t mention having any pitches he called shaken off. He simply said that Darvish made only three mistakes, and Pedro Alvarez (twice) and Adam Jones didn’t miss them.

Each home run came with two strikes. The Jones homer barely cleared the wall in left field and is likely an out at most ballparks. It was a home run to start the sixth at Camden Yards.

“I felt good that I was getting good pitch counts and getting into tempo, but it was just giving up those home runs,” Darvish said. “This is a home run ballpark. It’s hitter-friendly. I had to be careful about that, but I wasn’t careful enough.”

Lucroy said that he sensed good chemistry developing between him and Darvish. It might improve if Darvish stops shaking off Lucroy’s pitch selections.

“After the first inning we started going well,” Lucroy said. “He gave us a chance to win.”

Chirinos to bench

The acquisition of Lucroy means that Robinson Chirinos will see a significant reduction in his playing time. He’s now the Rangers’ backup catcher after opening the past two seasons as the primary catcher.

Chirinos is never one to rock the boat, so he didn’t say that he was upset to see his time cut. Instead, he said that he’s going to continue to prepare as he always has and be ready to play.

“I have to do my best every time I have the chance to catch and help the team behind the plate and hitting,” Chirinos said. “Sometimes there stuff you don’t control. As a player you have to learn you only do what you can control.”

Manager Jeff Banister said that he will try to keep Chirinos engaged even though Lucroy started his 80th game of the season at catcher Tuesday. Lucroy caught five consecutive days twice this season with Milwaukee.

“I’ve looked at the calendar of games played and how Lucroy was used,” Banister said. “We’ll try to find a sweet spot of games played for him but to also keep Chirinos engaged. It’s not that we don’t like Robbie. We like Robbie a lot.”

Banister said that Lucroy is unlikely to start at first base, which he did five times with the Brewers. If a tough left-hander pushes Mitch Moreland to the bench, Ryan Rua or Jurickson Profar would be Banister’s choice.

Holland, Choo updates

Left-hander Derek Holland will begin a rehab assignment Friday with Triple A Round Rock, throwing two innings or 30 pitches at Oklahoma City, after throwing 30 pitches in a two-inning simulated game.

Though he gave up a homer to Hanser Alberto, Holland, out with shoulder inflammation, was pleased with how he did and how he felt afterward.

“We got our work in and did what we needed to do,” said Holland, who is eligible to come off the 60-day disabled list Aug. 20. “I pitched from behind a couple times and they got it, but overall I thought it was good.”

Choo also faced Holland and said that his lower-back stiffness is not an issue. Choo will run and do other baseball activities Wednesday and could possible be activate from the 15-day DL on Thursday.

This story was originally published August 2, 2016 at 10:11 PM with the headline "Shaking off Lucroy proves costly for Darvish in Rangers’ loss."