12:37pm: The diagnosis is brutal for the Dodgers, as Roberts revealed to reporters that Ryu won’t return before the All-Star break (Twitter links via Pedro Moura of The Athletic). The injury sounds rather gruesome. Roberts explained that a muscle in Ryu’s groin tore completely off the bone.
Ryu will be replaced in the rotation by top prospect Walker Buehler (Twitter link via Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times). J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group adds that Buehler is on an innings limit, however, so he although he will nominally be the team’s fifth starter, he may not technically start every fifth day.
12:12pm: The Dodgers announced that they’ve placed left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu on the 10-day disabled list with a left groin strain and optioned infielder Breyvic Valera to Triple-A on Thursday. In a pair of corresponding moves, utilityman Tim Locastro and right-hander Yimi Garcia have been recalled from Triple-A.
The press release didn’t include any sort of timetable for Ryu’s return, though manager Dave Roberts said after last night’s game that the strain was a “pretty good” one and called the injury a “big loss” for the team, which doesn’t exactly exude optimism regarding a minimal DL stay for Ryu. Roberts is hardly exaggerating when he calls any absence for Ryu significant, as the 31-year-old has dominated opposing lineups in 2018, working to a 2.12 ERA with 10.9 K/9, 3.0 BB/9, 0.9 HR/9 and 56.7 percent ground-ball rate in 29 2/3 innings.
Garcia, 27, will give the Dodgers the potential for a quality boost to the relief corps in what will be his first MLB action since undergoing Tommy John surgery back in 2016. Garcia possesses a 3.12 ERA with 9.7 K/9, 1.4 BB/9, 1.2 HR/9 and a 30.6 percent grounder rate in 75 innings at the Major League level and looked to be an emerging key cog in the L.A. bullpen before incurring his torn ligament. So far in Triple-A, he’s allowed three runs in 7 2/3 innings of work and picked up seven strikeouts without issuing a walk.
Locastro, 25, has experience at both middle-infield slots and in the outfield corners. He has just one MLB plate appearance under his belt but was off to a fast start in Triple-A, hitting .342/.448/.507 there. Valera, 26, has similarly impressive Triple-A numbers this season and was hitless in four MLB plate appearances. Locastro, though, has more recent experience at shortstop, so it seems he’s viewed as the better option to help provide depth in Corey Seager’s absence for the time being.
Til after the break, I hear.
Trades are going to have to happen soon or someone will get fired
The reason trades haven’t happened are two.
It’s early May, and trades rarely happen in early May.
Execs want to stay under 197, and trades are unlikely to keep the number under 197.
Man if they don’t do something it might just be a 3rd place finish.
Is it worth losing international foreign spending money for the future?
Fans and execs with different opinions.
It’s just been one of those kind of years
Yup! That whole division is taking a beating with all the injuries.
At least we get to see Buehler. Great prospect and should excel in the majors.
If he stays healthy, yeah.
I think they just have to accept that this isn’t their year
That, or cut into their competitive window.
I agree. I’ve said this in the other threads: the Dodgers should pack it in for the season, trade everybody who won’t be in their plans for next season for pieces (especially bullpen) that gives them a better base for next year. Give the kids a good long audition so the needs in the offseason will be in better focus. Not a “rebuild” but a reset.
It’s a bit early to be screaming doomsday, isn’t it?
Despite all the injuries and sub-par performance, the Dodgers are still top half of the league in basic pitching AND hitting metrics. They’ve scored more runs than they’ve given up, so there will be some regression to the mean with their record.
Wait until we get Turner back, and see what moves can be made on the trade market. This isn’t the first time that the Dodgers have had a rough start, and it won’t be the last. Just like it’s not the first time fans have called for giving up prematurely, and won’t be the last once more.
While Ryu is a loss because he has performed well in his 30 innings – was anyone really banking on him to produce much this season anyway? If Ryu is such a loss now, then why weren’t people hitting the nuclear option earlier on when we didn’t think we’d get anything from him?
There’s talent to come back on the roster – arguably our best hitter is due back soon, at a key position. We’ve got Buehler and Verdugo up – two blue chip guys that other teams wish they had as their Plan B.
Relax. Calm, y’all.
In a word, no, it isn’t too early. The bullpen is a complete disaster with no apparent plan to fix it, and Seager’s production can’t or at least won’t be replaced. You are right that nobody expected Ryu to be the staff ace, but some of us had not forgotten how good he was before the injury. Finally he’d returned to being the solid mid-rotation starter he was once. Now gone for months at least. Buehler can’t really replace him because he is going be strictly innings limited (and isn’t he already starting in place of Hill?). He is someone to work in here and there, not pitch every five days.
This FO will not spend over the limit. They put on that straight jacket over the winter and they clearly intend to wear it for the season. An unwillingness to spend means no adds without giving up a lot. Would you be happy to see them ship off Verdugo or some other top prospect for a temporary solution?
So that’s what we are actually looking at. Call it doomsday if you want. I call it reality.
Under no circumstance are they going to pack it in. The pen looks bad but lets see how they do when they arent playing the same teams every game. Everyone in the pen went cold at once which also hurt them. When Toles and Turner come back the lineup will be pretty good
Under no circumstances? Is that really what you meant to say?
Let’s play it your way and see where the team stands at the end of May. But I will ask you now, if they are still a sub .500 club at that point, or even a little better, would you want them to trade one or more prime prospects for a chance at the postseason?
I see downvotes, but no answers. It isn’t a trick question.
Ok fine if disaster happens and they are out of the race they will trade Grandal and attempt to trade Forsythe. Its really panicking to think they are done this early.
That wasn’t really my question, though, was it? Mathematically nobody is “out of the race” by the end of May. I deliberately did not ask the question that way. The question I actually asked is a very straight-forward one about what the Dodgers should do if they continue on this way for another month. I think it deserves a straight-forward answer. I have to notice that nobody seems to want to touch it only to show displeasure at it having been asked.
If that happens they should trade Grandal, Kershaw, Forsythe and whoever else is a free agent at the end of the year to the highest bidders.
At the end of the year?
Flip Maeda into Ryu’s spot then make Ryu a reliever.
you get his arm and attempt to save him from further injury.