At long last, Hyun-Jin Ryu will return to the Dodgers’ starting rotation. The lefty hasn’t pitched since Game 3 of the 2014 NLCS against the Cardinals. He underwent shoulder surgery last year and has been rehabbing ever since.
The Dodgers signed Ryu, now 29, to a six-year, $36 million contract in December 2012. He turned out to be a quality starting pitcher, compiling a 3.00 ERA over 30 starts in 2013 and a 3.38 ERA over 26 starts in 2014. With the Dodgers’ rotation currently depleted due to injuries, Ryu’s return couldn’t have come at a better time. Clayton Kershaw is on the disabled list with a mild herniated disk. Alex Wood is expected to be out until early August with left elbow soreness. Brett Anderson won’t return until at least mid-August as he’s recovering from back surgery performed in March. Brandon McCarthy made his season debut on Sunday after recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Ryu will take the mound at 10:10 PM EDT tonight, facing Padres lefty Drew Pomeranz, who has been shockingly elite thus far.
The rest of Thursday’s action…
Detroit Tigers (Justin Verlander) @ Toronto Blue Jays (Drew Hutchison), 7:07 PM EDT
New York Yankees (Ivan Nova) @ Cleveland Indians (Trevor Bauer), 7:10 PM EDT
Washington Nationals (Lucas Giolito) @ New York Mets (Bartolo Colon), 7:10 PM EDT
Atlanta Braves (Lucas Harrell) @ Chicago Cubs (Jason Hammel), 8:05 PM EDT
Minnesota Twins (Tyler Duffey) @ Texas Rangers (Chi Chi Gonzalez), 8:05 PM EDT
Oakland Athletics (Rich Hill) @ Houston Astros (Doug Fister), 8:10 PM EDT
Seattle Mariners (James Paxton) @ Kansas City Royals (Danny Duffy), 8:15 PM EDT
Philadelphia Phillies (Adam Morgan) @ Colorado Rockies (Chad Bettis), 8:40 PM EDT
