Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
| IP | K% | BB% | HR/9 | ERA | FIP | xFIP | WAR | |
| MLB | 4.2 | 16.7 | 8.3 | 1.93 | 11.57 | 5.50 | 4.86 | -0.2 |
What Happened in 2016: Made one MLB start before returning to the disabled list for the remainder of the season.
After missing all of the 2015 season due to shoulder surgery, the Dodgers hoped that Hyun-Jin Ryu would be able to contribute at some point during 2016. The road back, however, took longer than expected, as he had several setbacks in his rehab before finally being reactivated.
Dustin wrote about Ryu coming back and how expectations should be tempered.
“It’s probably best not to expect much from Ryu this season. That way, if he doesn’t come close to regaining his old form, it’s less of a disappointment. It’s highly unlikely — at least this season — that Ryu is the guy he was before the injury. He was a legitimate No. 2 starter. Now, if he’s a decent No. 4/5 starter, that’d be a huge win. Then again, even that feels optimistic.”
On July 7, Ryu pitched 4 2/3 innings against the Padres, allowing six runs on eight hits and two walks. I had the recap that day.
“Hyun-jin Ryu‘s return to the majors was unceremonious. He made it through just four and two-thirds innings, allowing six earned runs on eight hits and two walks (one intentional) while striking out four. He threw 89 pitches, 55 for strikes. The 84 pitches he threw in his final rehab start was his previous high for the season.
Five of the eight hits Ryu allowed went for extra bases, including the first at bat of the game, when Melvin Upton welcomed Ryu back rather rudely by launching a 92 MPH fastball into the right field pavilion. 92 MPH is what Ryu would top out at tonight, and it was somewhat encouraging to see him hit that mark repeatedly. We’ll continue to keep an eye on his velocity as the season goes on.”
Two weeks later, Ryu was placed on the DL with elbow tendinitis. He would not make another appearance in 2016 and underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left elbow in September.
2017 Status: Ryu is said to be ready to pitch in 2017. We’ll see about that. In any event, at 348 2/3 career MLB innings pitched, he will not hit the 750 IP necessary to opt out following the 2017 season.
