Padres @ Dodgers August 12, 2017: Chacín vs. Ryu

Photo: Stacie Wheeler

Coming off of a rare loss, the Dodgers (81-34) square off with the Padres (51-64) once again at Dodger Stadium. Hyun-Jin Ryu (3.53 ERA, 4.30 FIP, 4.35 DRA) is on the mound looking to build upon some very encouraging recent success.

Padres
Dodgers
6:10 p.m. PT
Los Angeles
CF
Margot
LF
Taylor
2B
 Asuaje
SS
Seager
LF
Pírela
3B
Turner
RF
Renfroe
1B
 Bellinger
1B
Myers
CF
Pederson
SS
Solarte
C
Grandal
3B
Spangenberg 2B Utley
C
Hedges
RF
Puig
P
Chacín (R)
P
Ryu (L)

Ryu is coming off of two consecutive seven-inning, no-run efforts, and is in the midst of a 15-inning scoreless streak. He was magnificent when he faced the Mets last Sunday, allowing just one hit and striking out eight batters while walking none in what was one of the best starts of his MLB career. This will be Ryu’s first time facing the Padres this season. Ryu’s only start of 2016 came against San Diego, and it … wasn’t very good (six runs in 4.2 IP), but obviously that shouldn’t color our expectations of him tonight.

Jhoulys Chacín (4.15 ERA, 4.38 FIP, 4.46 DRA) is the closest thing the Padres have to a staff ace, which isn’t really saying much. He’s hovering right around league average in most major categories. He does get a lot of ground balls, though — his 51.4 percent ground ball rate is a good seven percent better than league average. This is Chacín’s fourth time facing the Dodgers this year. After getting roughed up by them on Opening Day (nine runs in 3.1 IP), he has since allowed just one run in 10.1 IP. An interesting note on Chacín from Joe Davis:

The two most recent starts Chacín made against the Dodgers were both at Petco Park.

——

A positive update on Rich Hill:

What a relief. That whole ordeal was frighteningly close to being so much worse.

A couple of Dodgers will be reactivated soon:

The moves necessary to bring Chris Hatcher and Adrián González back remain to be seen.

Finally, the next step for Clayton Kershaw:

As previously reported, if this bullpen session goes well, the following step for Kershaw is likely making a rehab start or two.

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.