Dodgers @ Mets August 6, 2017: Ryu, once again, for the sweep

Photo: Sarah Wexler

In case you somehow didn’t hear, with yesterday’s victory, the Dodgers (78-32) secured the best 50-game run (43-7) of any MLB team since 1912. Tonight, in their second consecutive appearance on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball, they try to sweep the Mets (49-59), both in this series and the season series.

Dodgers
Mets
5:08 PM PT
New York
LF
Taylor
CF
Conforto
SS
 Seager
3B
Cabrera
3B
Turner
LF
Céspedes
1B
Bellinger
1B
Flores
2B
Forsythe
RF
Granderson
C
Barnes
2B
Reyes
CF
Hernández C d’Arnaud
RF
Puig
SS
Rosario
P
Ryu (L)
P
Matz (L)

Hyun-Jin Ryu (3.83 ERA, 4.60 FIP, 4.82 DRA) will be making his 16th start of the season. That’s pretty remarkable in and of itself, considering how long his road to recovery from shoulder surgery in 2014 was. But what’s even more remarkable is the fact that he’s been above-average this year, and really quite good recently (despite a DL stint that took him out for most of July).

Ryu’s last time on the mound was seven days ago, when he pitched seven scoreless innings against the Giants (in what ended up being the Kyle Farmer walk-off game). It was his best start of the year and, really, his best start since August of 2014. In his past five starts, Ryu has a 2.60 ERA across 27.2 innings pitched, with 30 strikeouts versus nine walks. One of those starts was a five-inning, two-run effort against the Mets in Los Angeles on June 22.

Steven Matz (5.50 ERA, 5.06 FIP, 6.22 DRA) has had a rough time this year. The 26-year-old lefty missed the first two months of the season due to elbow inflammation in his throwing arm. While he got good results in his initial return, he’s struggled over the past month, allowing 24 earned runs in 18.1 IP across five starts.

The Dodgers once again trot out the lineup that’s become standard against lefties, with Enrique Hernández in center field over Joc Pederson, and Austin Barnes catching over Yasmani Grandal. (Grandal left yesterday’s game in the eighth inning with back spasms, but is available to pinch hit tonight.)

——

An update on Alex Wood, who’s been dealing with fatigue:

Sounds promising.

About Sarah Wexler

Sarah Wexler is a native Angeleno and longtime Dodger fan. She began blogging about baseball in 2012 on her Tumblr, New Grass On The Field, where she covered an array of topics but especially enjoyed exploring baseball history. She is now a reporter/producer for MLB.com. She earned her master's degree in Sports Management from Cal State Long Beach. She graduated from New York University in 2014 with a bachelor's in History and a minor in American Studies. She's an avid Springsteen fan, which is a big boost to her baseball writer cred.