The revitalization of right-hander Brandon McCarthy (pictured) continues to move forward.The next time Texas Rangers manager Ron Washington feels it necessary to accentuate the virtues of resiliency and perseverance to his players, it would probably be to his benefit if he were to simply pop in a tape of Thursday evening's six-overtime college basketball marathon between Big East rivals Syracuse and Connecticut.

Aside from it being one of the best games I have ever watched from start to finish, it was also the consummate display of those two qualities from a collection of unyielding young men who somehow rallied over and over again from the precipice of exhaustion to put on a show that may not have been the most crisply executed, but was definitely one of the most entertaining and engaging hardwood battles in recent memory.

The Madison Square Garden scoreboard might have read "Syracuse 127, Connecticut 117" by the time the historic sixth overtime had drawn to a close and the clock read 1:22 a.m., but while the outcome might have indicated otherwise, not one man walked off that court as a loser.

● Athletics general manager Billy Beane famously quipped in Michael Lewis's "Moneyball" that "baseball is a war of attrition, and what's being attrited is pitchers' arms." Setting the questionable grammar aside for a moment, that principle remains just as relevant today as it always has, and with Opening Day just 3½ weeks away, the Rangers are emerging as a pleasant early surprise on that front in relation to their AL West counterparts:

"Our pitching staff’s medical report right now is about 10 percent of the size it was at its smallest point a year ago," [general manager Jon] Daniels said. "We know that’s part of the game, but we do think that will be better.

Since Cactus League play commenced in late February, Athletics right-hander Justin Duchscherer -- who has logged nearly 250 days on the 15-day and 60-day disabled lists dating back to the beginning of 2006 -- has been shut down due to elbow soreness, Mariners right-hander Brandon Morrow has been beset by forearm stiffness, and Angels right-hander Ervin Santana has been impeded by a sprained MCL in his pitching elbow -- all injuries that could adversely impact their availability through the regular season's first several weeks, and, consequently, their teams' hopes of quickly establishing divisional supremacy.

Texas, meanwhile, has successfully endured an early scare from right-hander Brandon McCarthy (whom we previously identified as the Rangers' pitching staff's biggest X-factor), and the 25-year-old hurler -- whose last 'B' game effort garnered decidedly mixed reviews -- elicited praise from virtually all corners with four sharp innings of one-hit, no-run baseball against Seattle on Thursday afternoon:

"I really wanted to get the fastball down as much as I could," said McCarthy. "I was able to get Strike One with it and that's important. I can't work up in the zone. I have to work on being more economical with my pitches. When you get up 0-and-1 in the count and can put the batter a little bit on the edge, you are going to have a real chance at being more efficient."

The sparkling results against a quite shoddy Mariners lineup were not so important as the processes through which McCarthy obtained those results, and while better command of his new slider -- which one long-time scout in attendance deemed "the best breaking ball [he had] ever seen him throw" -- is obviously imperative, the confidence that he is openly expressing in his fastball and, more importantly, in his health is indubitably refreshing.

Keep your fingers crossed that the mysterious elixir of health from which the Rangers are currently thriving does not run out anytime soon, because a healthy and confident 25-man roster synthesized with a relatively easy early-season schedule and three potentially hobbled divisional rivals could conceivably transform the Rangers' 2009 campaign into a very compelling storyline ... and very quickly, at that.

● The return of outfielders Frank Catalanotto (Italy) and Nelson Cruz (Dominican Republic) from the World Baseball Classic will likely equate to less playing time for their younger counterparts who remain on the 25-man roster periphery, including Julio Borbon and Greg Golson (both of whom are candidates to be reassigned to minor league camp in the very near future); as things presently stand, Brandon Boggs will likely be assigned to Triple-A Oklahoma City to begin the regular season, and the enigma that is Andruw Jones will (a) invoke the opt-out clause in his minor league deal on March 20th, (b) be released, or (c) create a serious outfield playing time conundrum for Cruz, Marlon Byrd and David Murphy pending his addition to the active roster.

Where does Catalanotto fit into all of this? Nowhere. And the mere notion that his contract could play a significant role in the decision to retain or release him is absolutely maddening, because spring player personnel decisions should be based on talent and projected usefulness, and Texas is presumably cognizant of his status as a sunk cost by now.

● Finally, the ongoing "Age-Gate" debacle regarding the practice of Dominican prospects falsifying their birthdates with the intent of appearing more impressive from a physical standpoint at earlier ages and extracting larger signing bonuses upon inking professional contracts has claimed 42 more victims, five of whom are reportedly members of the Rangers organization and cannot currently obtain visas to travel stateside. According to D Magazine's Evan Grant, that contingent does not include left-hander Martin Perez or right-hander Wilmer Font, but until an official list is released there is nothing productive to be derived from baseless speculation.

That said, these are very unnerving revelations, and as soon as more information comes into our possession we'll be certain to pass it along.

Quick Hits: Jon Daniels chatted with NBC5's Newy Scruggs and Richard Durrett of the Dallas Morning News on 105.3 FM The Fan on Thursday; click here to listen ... Right-hander Neftali Feliz's heater reportedly sat around 95-97 mph during his two-inning relief appearance on Thursday afternoon, but a walk and hit-by-pitch indicate a need to continue refining his command ... Right-hander Jason Jennings believes that his arm strength is right around 80-85 percent ... Right-hander Luis Mendoza (blister, right middle finger) hopes to throw a bullpen session on Friday ... Free-agent right-hander Chad Cordero has opted to sign with the Mariners on a minor league deal; Texas reportedly offered more money, but Seattle reportedly promised Cordero the role of closer once he attains full health.