The Los Angeles Dodgers pitching staff has been impacted by an excessive amount of injuries this season, and River Ryan joined the unfortunate list with his ulnar collateral ligament strain that is going to require Tommy John surgery.
Ryan suffered the injury during his start against the Pittsburgh Pirates over the weekend. He failed to convince Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and head athletic trainer Thomas Albert to leave him in the game, but after the win expressed some confidence the injury wouldn’t be serious.
However, an MRI and additional testing on Sunday revealed the strain. Despite the prognosis often leading to Tommy John surgery, the Dodgers held off on such a plan of treatment for a couple days and initially only ruled Ryan out from returning this season.
Ryan ultimately needing the elbow ligament replacement operation didn’t come as much of a surprise but it nevertheless saddened Roberts, via SportsNet LA:
“We were holding out hope, but unfortunately he’s got to get the surgery. From me talking to River, he’s been through trials and knows how to handle it mentally. He’s going to miss being with the guys, but this is a surgery that they’ve got a pretty good handle on it, so we expect a full recovery. It’s just really disappointing.”
Ryan made his MLB debut against the San Francisco Giants on July 22 and made four starts for the Dodgers. The right-hander went 1-0 with a 1.33 ERA, 3.38 FIP and 1.18 WHIP in 20.1 innings pitched in those outings.
His success certainly garnered the Dodgers’ attention and led to Ryan’s name being included in early conversations for a potential postseason role.
It would’ve represented another significant achievement and step forward for the former shortstop who did not begin pitching until being traded to the Dodgers in 2022.
Instead, Ryan is now poised to navigate a recovery from his second injury of the year. He didn’t pitch during Spring Training because of right shoulder inflammation that in turn delayed Ryan’s start to the Minor League season until the middle of June.
Pitch clock to blame for River Ryan’s injury?
As there has been a sharp rise in pitcher injuries across MLB, some believe the pitch clock is partly to blame. That was a point Ryan raised in the immediate aftermath of his injury.
“It’s part of the game. It happens,” Ryan initially said of getting injured. “I mean, the pitch clock definitely makes you speed up a lot. Which back in the day you didn’t have to speed up as much. Throwing back-to-back pitches within 15 seconds starts to take a toll.”
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!
