The first edition of the 2019 Freeway Series will take place far away from Interstate 5 for which the rivalry between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Angels is named.
The Dodgers host a split-squad Angels team at Camelback Ranch on Sunday in the second game of Cactus League play for both teams. Hyun-Jin Ryu starts for the Dodgers, while Jesus Castillo takes the mound for the Angels.
Ryu returned to the Dodgers in the offseason by accepting the team’s one year, $17.9 million qualifying offer. He will look to start building upon a solid 2018 that saw him pitch to a 3.00 ERA. However, he missed a significant amount of time due to a groin injury and only made 15 starts.
Ryu shut down the Atlanta Braves in the National League Division Series but struggled over his next three postseason starts, two NL Championship Series outings against the Milwaukee Brewers, then in Game 2 of the World Series against the Boston Red Sox.
Pitchers that are scheduled to throw after Ryu are some of the organizations top pitching prospects, including Dennis Santana, Mitchell White, Dustin May and Tony Gonsolin.
Russell Martin is batting cleanup and starts at catcher after his first outing this spring came as a designated hitter. Martin whacked a bases-loaded RBI double Saturday in his first plate appearance back with the Dodgers.
“When I start catching, it’s going to be different,” Martin said after Saturday’s game. “I’m going to catch a bunch of guys I haven’t caught before. I’m excited about that, too.”
While Martin played his first game of the spring on Saturday, A.J. Pollock makes his Dodgers debut. He’s starting in center field and batting leadoff.
Castillo is the Angels’ No. 23 overall prospect, per MLB Pipeline. He recorded a 4.94 ERA over 98.1 innings at Double-A Mobile in 2018. He’ll be backed by a lineup that’s devoid of several Angels regulars.
Kole Calhoun is one of Anaheim’s select players making the trip to Camelback Ranch.
Dodgers lineup
CF: A.J. Pollock
DH: Max Muncy
SS: Chris Taylor
C: Russell Martin
1B: David Freese
RF: Ezequiel Carrera
LF: Alex Verdugo
3B: Edwin Rios
2B: Jake Peter
Angels lineup:
RF: Kole Calhoun
CF: Peter Bourjos
C: Kevan Smith
LF: Jarrett Parker
3B: David Fletcher
1B: Matt Thaiss
2B: Jahmai Jones
DH: Julian Leon
SS: Wilfredo Tovar
