Reds give up 4 runs in 5 innings in 2-day comeback try to win for first time in 438 days
Cleveland ranks last in AL in team home runs
The “Korean Monster,” Ryu Hyun-jin, 36, of the Toronto Blue Jays, will try to get his first win since returning from injury.
Ryu will start the 2023 Major League Baseball (MLB) World Series against the Cleveland Indians at 8:10 a.m. ET at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio, USA.
The last time Ryu threw a winning pitch in an MLB game was on May 27 last year against the Los Angeles Angels. It will be 438 days since Ryu threw a winning pitch.
After undergoing elbow ligament reconstruction surgery (Tommy John surgery) last June and rehabbing for nearly 14 months, Hyun-jin Ryu made his comeback on June 2 against the Baltimore Orioles at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
In his return, Ryu was shaky, allowing four runs on nine hits, including one home run, in five innings. He gave up four long balls, including one home run and three doubles.
His fastball velocity was below expectations at 91 mph (146.5 km/h) with an average of 89 mph (143.2 km/h), and his changeup was shaky.
There were positives. When his changeup faltered, Ryu relied on his big curveball to get him through the third through fifth innings.
Considering it was his first start in 426 days since June 2 of last year, and the opponent was the Baltimore Orioles, the American League’s winningest team, it was a solid outing.
“I’m very happy to be back, but I’m a little disappointed that I didn’t do what a starting pitcher is supposed to do,” Ryu said after the game, adding, “I think my velocity can go up another mile or two (about 1.6-3.2 kilometers). I didn’t throw it where I wanted to, but I’ll get better in all areas,” he said.
Ryu’s next opponent in his second start back will be a bit easier to deal with than Baltimore.
Cleveland is in second place in the American League Central with a 54-58 record through seven games. Out of the 15 teams in the American League, they are 11th in runs scored.
The offense is not very strong.
They’re 7th in batting average at .251, but 11th in OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) at .696.
The long ball drops off significantly. Cleveland is 13th in the American League in team on-base percentage at .382. They are last in team home runs with 84. They are the only team in the American League with fewer than 100 team home runs.
The offense has been even worse lately. Cleveland has lost four of its last five games since August, none by more than five runs. They’ve scored just 13 runs in that five-game stretch.
Cleveland’s team batting average in those five games since August is an abysmal .194.
Cleveland traded away its top two hitters at the trade deadline, Josh Bell (Miami Marlins) and Ahmed Rosario (Los Angeles Dodgers).
Josh Naylor, who is batting .306 and is the only player on the team with a triple-digit batting average, is out with a side injury.
Jose Ramirez, who has the team’s best OPS (.861), is the only other player on the roster who will be suspended for getting into a fistfight with opposing shortstop Tim Anderson in a game against the Chicago White Sox on April 6.
The MLB Office of the Commissioner has not yet issued a suspension, so Ramirez will play against the White Sox on Sunday.
Starting against Ryu will be Gavin Williams, a rookie right-hander who made his big league debut this year.
Since making his big league debut in July, Williams has gone 1-3 with a 3.38 ERA in eight games. In his last four starts, he hasn’t gone past five innings.
It’s also good news for Ryu that the Toronto offense has been on fire lately.
Toronto won all three games of a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox from May 5-7, scoring 8.33 runs per game. On the 7th, they pounded out 16 hits in a 13-1 blowout win.
He also has fond memories of facing Cleveland in the past. Ryu has faced Cleveland three times in his career, going 2-0 with a 2.84 ERA.
With 899 strikeouts in his big league career, 스포츠토토맨 Ryu is one strikeout away from reaching the 900-strikeout plateau.