SURPRISE, Ariz. – Yu Darvish is more at ease in his second spring with the Texas Rangers, and he still is throwing hard.

The Japanese ace, who won 16 games last season as a major league rookie, struck out two while retiring all six White Sox he faced in his first spring start. The Sox then scored 11 runs over the next two innings on the way to a 14-8 victory Tuesday.

“His velocity was up, his stuff was just better,” said new Rangers catcher A.J. Pierzynski, who faced his former team while catching Darvish. “He threw the ball really well and it was very encouraging to see. We talked in the bullpen and talked before the game about what he wanted to accomplish, and he accomplished everything that he wanted to and needed to.”