“Ryu Hyun-jin (36) will continue his major league career instead of ending his career as a player in the KBO League in 2024.”
'Super Agent Scott Boras' appeared at the annual general manager's meeting held in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA on the 9th (Korean time). Among several topics, Boras was asked about Ryu Hyun-jin, who has now returned to Korea after completing a four-year contract with the Toronto Blue Jays this season. Boras said, “Ryu Hyun-jin is already receiving a lot of interest from big league teams this offseason.”
Ryu Hyun-jin, who spent six seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers after entering the Major League in 2013, signed with the Toronto Blue Jays as a free agent after the 2019 season and began a four-year journey with them. Ryu Hyun-jin has been very active since his first season. He recorded 5 wins, 2 losses, and an average ERA of 2.69 in 12 games in the 2020 season, which was shortened due to COVID-19, and ranked third in the American League (AL) Cy Young Award race.
In the 2021 season, Ryu Hyun-jin played his role well in the starting rotation with 14 wins, 10 losses, and an average ERA of 4.37 in 31 games. The only time Ryu Hyun-jin showed good performance in the major leagues by accumulating double-digit multipliers for two consecutive years was in 2013 and 2014, his major league debut season.
However, what held Ryu Hyun-jin back was an injury. Ryu Hyun-jin, who took the starting mound against the Chicago White Sox in June of last year, complained of elbow pain and left the mound without completing five innings. After the game, Ryu Hyun-jin underwent an MRI scan, and as a result of the examination, an injury to his medial collateral ligament (UCL) was discovered, so he decided to undergo Tommy John Surgery.
Ryu Hyun-jin spent over a year in rehabilitation after completing Tommy John surgery. Rehabilitation went smoothly, and Ryu Hyun-jin made four minor league starts last July, going undefeated with two wins and an ERA of 2.00 in four games. And last August, he appeared on the big league stage for the first time in one year and two months.
Ryu Hyun-jin became the losing pitcher in his first game back in the big leagues, allowing 4 runs in 5 innings, but he went on to win 3 times in a row. His performance in August was 3 wins, 1 loss, and an average ERA of 2.25 in 5 games. He pitched against the Colorado Rockies in his first appearance in September and against the Oakland Athletics in his second appearance, allowing 2 runs in 5 innings.
He became the losing pitcher against the World Series champion Texas Rangers, but continued his good trend by achieving his first quality start (QS, 3 earned runs or less in 6 innings) after his return. But his last two games have been a drag. Ryu Hyun-jin pitched against the Tampa Bay Rays on September 23rd and 30th, but performed poorly, allowing 5 runs in 4⅓ innings and 2 runs in 3 innings, respectively.
Ryu Hyun-jin recorded an ERA of 3.46 with 38 strikeouts 나트랑 밤문화 in 52 innings in 11 starts after returning from injury. Although his overall speed was lower than before the surgery, he showed off his skillful game management ability with accurate control and command.
However, Ryu Hyun-jin was not selected at a critical moment. His team, Toronto, ranked third in the American League East Division, but also advanced to the postseason by rising to third place in the wild card rankings. Unfortunately, Ryu Hyun-jin was excluded from the Minnesota Twins and American League Wild Card Series (ALWS) roster and was unable to play fall baseball.
Toronto ended this season's schedule with a loss to Minnesota in the Wild Card Series, and Ryu Hyun-jin, who signed a four-year contract with Toronto in the 2019 offseason, also completed his journey in Toronto. Ryu Hyun-jin returned to Korea through Incheon International Airport on the 18th of last month.
In an interview upon returning to Korea, Ryu Hyun-jin said, "(The promise to spend the last part of my career at Hanwha) remains the same, here and of course I will do so," and added, "I am not sure where I will play in 2024. I don't know what to say at this point. We will have to wait and see." “I think so,” he said, leaving open the possibility of returning to the country.
However, Boras said on this day, "Ryu Hyun-jin will continue his major league career instead of finishing his career in the KBO League in the 2024 season." He added, “Ryu Hyun-jin is already receiving a lot of attention from many big leagues.” In other words, it was confirmed that Ryu Hyun-jin's destination was the major league, not Korea. In fact, there is no possibility of him returning to Korea this season.
Boras is a super agent representing MLB. It has many sports stars as its customers. Chan-ho Park, Shin-soo Choo (currently SSG Landers), and Hyun-jin Ryu have appointed Boras as their agent. Lee Jeong-hoo, who is knocking on the door of the Major League through the posting system this offseason, is also a Boras customer.
Meanwhile, according to local reports, Ryu Hyun-jin is currently receiving interest from many teams in the major leagues, including his home team, the Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston Astros, Atlanta Braves, Arizona Diamondbacks, Tampa Bay Rays, Minnesota Twins, and Detroit Tigers.