The Los Angeles Dodgers have often taken measures to ensure Hyun-Jin Ryu starts at Dodger Stadium over the past few seasons but their latest rotation shuffle had the left-hander taking the mound on the road against the Cincinnati Reds.
Ryu historically hadn’t fared well at Great American Ball Park, going 1-2 with a 5.06 ERA and 1.69 WHIP. In 52 career road starts, he’d pitched a 3.52 ERA that’s nearly a full run higher than his mark at home.
While Ryu didn’t flirt with a no-hitter as he did in each of his previous two outings — both at Dodger Stadium — he held the Reds to just five hits over seven shutout innings.
After extending his scoreless streak to 31 consecutive innings, Ryu touted his current stretch as being unrivaled, per Jorge Castillo of the L.A. Times:
“I don’t think there’s ever been a roll like this,” Ryu said.
Beyond not allowing a run since Brandon Brandon Belt’s sacrifice fly in the first inning May 1 start at Oracle Park, Ryu has been nothing short of stellar. His 1.52 ERA and 0.74 WHIP both lead the Majors, and Ryu’s collected 59 strikeouts to only four walks.
Furthermore, his .190 batting average against is good for fifth-best overall, and opponents’ .519 on-base plus slugging percentage is third amongst all pitchers. Ryu has been even more stingy with runners in scoring position, as he’s yet to allow a hit in 24 such at-bats.
Ryu’s stretch of not allowing a run is the 10th-longest in Los Angeles franchise history. Orel Hershiser holds the MLB record with 59 consecutive scoreless innings, set during the 1988 season.
Zack Greinke (45.2 innings in 2015) and Clayton Kershaw (41 in 2014) are recent Dodgers pitchers who began to threaten the mark. Whether or not Ryu continues to add to his scoreless stretch, the Dodgers would certainly take how he’s pitched overall this season.
Buoyed by going at least seven innings in his past five outings, Ryu is 6-1 with the aforementioned 1.52 ERA to go along with a 0.74 WHIP. Both would be career-bests for the 32-year-old.
