ARLINGTON -- The Rangers reached an agreement Thursday with free-agent pitcher Colby Lewis on a one-year contract worth $4 million. Although nothing is guaranteed, Lewis becomes a leading candidate to be one of the Rangers' five starters going into Opening Day.Texas' rotation right now is headed by right-hander Yu Darvish and left-hander Derek Holland. The Rangers' internal candidates include Nick Tepesch, Nick Martinez, Lisalverto Bonilla and 2013 first-round Draft pick Alex Gonzalez. The Rangers will try to add one more starter from the outside, either by trade or free agency. 
Lewis, 35, made 29 starts for the Rangers after missing 18 months because of flexor tendon and hip replacement surgery. He finished 10-14 with a 5.18 ERA while leading the team in starts and innings pitched. He was 4-8 with a 3.86 ERA in 13 starts after the All-Star break.Lewis was the Rangers' top pick in the 1999 Draft, but his career suffered a major setback after he was claimed off waivers by the Tigers in 2004 and then missed the entire following season because of a torn rotator cuff.But he revived his career with two outstanding seasons in Japan in 2008-09 and then was signed as a free agent by the Rangers. It proved to be one of the best moves the Rangers made on their way to two straight World Series appearances in 2010-11.From 2010-12, Lewis was 32-29 with a 3.93 ERA in 80 starts. He also made eight postseason starts, going 4-1 with a 2.34 ERA. He is the Rangers' all-time leader in postseason wins and starts.But his career again got sidetracked in 2012. He was 6-4 with a 3.43 ERA in 16 starts before being shut down because of an elbow injury that ultimately led to surgery in July of that year.Lewis attempted a comeback in 2013 but was shut down after seven Minor League rehabilitation starts and he decided to have hip resurfacing surgery in August. The operation was designed to alleviate the chronic pain in Lewis' right hip that he was experiencing from the time he had been pitching in Japan.Lewis reported to Spring Training this year pain-free and he rejoined the Rangers' rotation in April after one start for Triple-A Round Rock. He was 6-6 with a 6.54 ERA at the All-Star break but a strong second half convinced the Rangers to bring him back for 2015.
T.R. Sullivan/ MLB.com
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