Even though there is still a month remaining in the regular season, it has become a foregone conclusion that the Los Angeles Dodgers are going to win the National League West for a seventh consecutive season.
Because of that, some of their current focus is on making sure key players are healthy and well-rested for October. One player who that is especially prevalent for is Hyun-Jin Ryu, who has an extensive injury history.
Ryu is one of the NL’s leading Cy Young candidates, but he has shown signs of fatigue in his last two starts, giving up a combined 11 runs in 10 innings to the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees.
The left-hander missed all but one start in the 2015 and 2016 seasons due to shoulder and elbow injuries, and then missed significant time in 2018 due to a groin issue.
He has remained healthy for the most part in 2019, which has led to already throwing 152.2 innings. That is the highest mark for Ryu since his rookie year in 2013.
In order to keep Ryu fresh, the Dodgers have said they plan to limit his workload down the stretch of the season. Despite that, Ryu maintains he is feeling healthy and in good shape, via Jorge Castillo of the L.A. Times:
“To be completely honest, this year has been really good in terms of conditioning and my health,” Ryu said through his interpreter, Bryan Lee. “Just by the feel of things, I feel really good.”
In 24 starts this season, Ryu is 12-4 with an MLB- best 2.00 ERA to go along with a 3.17 FIP, 0.98 WHIP, 133 strikeouts and 19 walks.
Along with Clayton Kershaw and Walker Buehler, Ryu rounds out one of the best top of the rotations in baseball. The trio is on track to combine for NL history at their current pace.
The Dodgers have been giving all three extra rest throughout the course of the season to limit their respective workloads so they remain fresh into the postseason. Even if it costs Ryu a chance at a Cy Young Award, the Dodgers are handling this correctly as they cannot afford to be without him, or any of their other top pitchers, for the playoffs.
