After signing a six-year, $36 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers in December 2012, Hyun-Jin Ryu went on to become a quality third starter for a rotation that at one point was led by Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke.
Ryu went 28-15 with a 3.17 ERA in his first two seasons, but because of shoulder and elbow surgeries, missed all of 2015 and made just one start the following year. He spent 2017 working off some rust and put together an impressive campaign last season.
Ryu has built on that, leading the Majors in several categories this year and earning first career selection to the All-Star Game. It was accompanied by Dodgers manager Dave Roberts naming Ryu the starting pitcher for the National League.
After throwing a scoreless inning at Progressive Field, the left-hander discussed his experience and shifting focus to helping the Dodgers reach the World Series for a third year in a row, via Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:
“I think I did my job, getting grounders is always good for a pitcher, and I got most of them as ground balls, so I think I did my job as best I could that one inning,” said Ryu.
“Knowing [NL manager] Dave [Roberts], there was definitely a good level of comfort, and also I think it was more of a present that he gave [the start] to me for the good first half that I had for him, so I’ll try to do my best for the second half to make sure that we get to the World Series.”
In another monumental moment for Ryu, he became the first Korean pitcher to ever start an MLB All-Star Game. He’s the 16th Dodgers pitcher to appear in the Midsummer Classic, and their first starter since Greinke in 2015.
Although the Dodgers went into the All-Star break on a three-game losing streak, they will open the unofficial second half of the 2019 season with the best record in baseball at 60-32. L.A. begins a three-game series with the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on Friday.
Ryu last pitched for the Dodgers on the Fourth of July, which aligned his All-Star Game start on regular rest. The same schedule is being kept, as the 32-year-old is scheduled to start in Sunday’s series finale.
