Hyun-Jin Ryu signed a 4-year contract with the Blue Jays last December. He led the Majors with a 2.32 ERA in 2019 and finished 2nd in the National League Cy Young voting. He was actually a Cy Young award favorite for most of the 2019 season, until he struggled in the late August and early September.
Ryu joined the Los Angeles Dodgers after the 2012 season and he was the first KBO player to enter MLB via the posting system. In his 6 seasons with the Dodgers, he recorded 54-33 with a 2.98 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP. Despite some injuries, Ryu still proved that he’s a great pitcher in the league.
Meanwhile, Ryu didn’t give up many walks. From 2013 to 2019, his BB% was only 5.4%. It’s extremely hard for hitters to get free passes under Ryu’s great control.
Ryu has never reached over 200 innings in the majors. However, he did show some solid numbers with the Dodgers. He missed the 2015 season with shoulder surgery and was limited to one start in 2016.
In 2017, Ryu started 24 games and had 1 relief appearance, earning his only save on May 25, 2017. He pitched 126.2 innings in 2017, the 5th most in the Dodgers. However, he didn’t pitch any games in the 2017 playoffs.
The Dodgers carried 12 pitchers in the first round of the 2017 postseason. Against the Diamondbacks, the Dodgers did a great job, sweeping the D-Backs and making their trip to the NLCS.
The 2017 NLCS and the 2016 NLCS were the same matchup, the Cubs and the Dodgers. The Dodgers carried 11 pitchers in this series and it was enough. The Dodgers only lost in game 4 when Alex Wood gave up 3 solo homers. In game 5, the Dodgers scored 11 runs and won the first NL pennant since 1988.
The 2017 World Series was one of the most intense fall classics. But now we all know that the cheating scandals of the Astros. In this series, the Dodgers carried 12 pitchers, adding Brandon McCarthy on the 25-man roster. McCarthy only pitched in the game 2 and gave up a 2-run homer in the top of the 11th inning.
Back in 2017, Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times wrote, the left-hander must go through an exhaustive pregame routine to warm up properly. Dodgers pitching coach Rick Honeycutt also indicated that Ryu could not mirror that warm-up routine mid-game as a reliever. Nonetheless, if Ryu could pitch in the 2017 playoffs, particularly in the World Series, what changes would happen?
Well, we all know what the Astros had done in the World Series. But the Dodgers could still be able to win the championship. Just imagine if Ryu could pitch 1 or 2 solid innings in the 2017 World Series, the result might be totally different.
Nevertheless, the result won’t be overturned. The Dodgers front office and coaching staff decided to have Alex Wood in the rotation and it was a right decision, Wood did pitch well in the 2017 World Series. Yu Darvish and Josh Fields both got the job done in the NLDS and NLCS, but they did not succeed in the WS. Adding Brandon McCarthy on the roster didn’t work out.
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