With Tempered Expectations, Blue Jays' Ryu Falls Flat in First Start

TORONTO — Hyun Jin Ryu didn’t seem bothered.

From the moment he trotted out of the bullpen with his fellow starters in tow through to his bumpy fourth inning, the left-hander kept a low heartbeat. Even a sharp comeback groundball off the knee didn’t phase him much.

It’s just how he is; he’s an easy going, happy-go-lucky guy, though that mantra was tested in the back half of last season, and again in Sunday’s 12-6 loss to the Rangers.

By Ryu’s high standards, 2021 was a lackluster year, and some of his struggles made it easy for folks to forget ‘The Korean Monster’ finished third in AL Cy Young voting in 2020.

But this is a different season with different expectations for Ryu. A full year of José Berríos and the addition of Kevin Gausman means the rotation no longer lives and dies with him at the top, so the 35-year-old can work with a little less pressure this year.

"I'm pretty confident," Ryu said through an interpreter. "I don't think there's a pitcher out there that goes on the mound without any confidence."

Having Matt Chapman at third base helps Ryu’s game, too. The slick fielding defender moved well all game, spinning to his left or scooping backhands to his right and firing to first. In the first inning, Ryu put his head down and walked towards the dugout as soon as a groundball hit Chapman’s glove.

The faith is there in his defense, and in himself. The output, however, was a bit suspect—and some of last season’s issues bubbled up again. Ryu needs to get early strikes to be successful; that’s a non-starter.

Getting ahead also allows Ryu to nibble the corners with his changeup—his best pitch—instead of just groove it down the middle because he’s behind in the count.

All pitchers work the heart of the plate more when they fall behind, but with Ryu that’s a particularly dangerous recipe. He got teed up Sunday because of some early misfires.

Despite three stable innings to start, Texas cranked Ryu in the fourth. At one point, the Rangers strung four hits together, and ultimately ended Ryu’s afternoon after just 3.1 innings and six earned runs.

"[Ryu] was really sharp at the beginning," Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said. "And then in the fourth inning, he lost he lost it there; threw too many pitches over the heart of the plate. That's a good hitting team, and they made him pay."

The Blue Jays’ offense tried its best to match the Rangers’ onslaught, though. Chapman, who was hitless on the season before Sunday, did his part on offense, cracking a three-run bomb that traveled 432 feet to center in the bottom of the first.

CHAPPY DAYS 🙌

It's @mattchap6's FIRST homer as a Blue Jay! pic.twitter.com/rkCT6EFBqs
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) April 10, 2022

The rest of the Blue Jays batting order bludgeoned Rangers starter Spencer Howard and his career 6.93 ERA. George Springer hit a leadoff homer; Danny Jansen went deep for the second time this season, and Vladimir Guerrero hit the longest home run of his career—a 467-foot rope into the Rogers Centre Flight Deck. Still, it wasn’t enough to match the Rangers’ 11 unanswered runs.

It’ll be a futile task for AL pitchers to try and tackle this lineup of hitters, and if the Blue Jays can squeeze a bit more life out of their pitching for the rest of the season, games like Sunday’s should be more often won than lost.

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